The Hunter
by redandsparkly
Summary: A dark, dysfunctional romance set in New Orleans during the Great Revelation- Bill/OFC with appearances by Eric, Sophie Anne, and Sookie eventually. Spoilers for the books and show. Contains explicit adult content.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author notes:**_

Hi there. This story already exists on another site, but I decided to post it here for posterity and because editing for strong language isn't required here. It is a multi-parter told from Bill's point of view, but other characters play a pivotal part in the story, including Eric. I already have seven chapters written so I will be updating fairly frequently, but it is currently a work in progress.

Your reviews are greatly appreciated. I am well aware of what is popular on this site and in this fan-verse, but Bill is my man and this story is about him before moving back to Bon Temps and getting tangled up with Sookie, with some vampire politics thrown in amidst the lemons.

You will note material and characters from the books in this fiction, but the context is mainly Alan Ball's vision. I'll shut up now. Thanks for reading.

**

**THE HUNTER **

**Part One **

I once told the woman who made me what I am that she was loneliest creature I had ever known, but tonight I was wondering whether I had been mistaken. The loneliest creature on Earth was myself, standing in a corner of this crowded establishment, surrounded by a swirl of happy, intoxicated humanity; loud and raucous, completely ignorant of the fact that a dangerous hunter lurked in their midst. I did not have to be here; making myself hungry and miserable from watching these humans drink and dance and rub up against each other like the animals in heat that they were. I was, after all, in the city that was most friendly to my kind. There was a secret palace not far from here where I could be with my own, and willing donors available to slake my thirst. But I preferred the clueless humans for company, though they were more of a torment than an amusement.

I longed for the day I could walk among them as an accepted eccentricity, and the day was coming soon; the channels of communication between different states and different countries had hummed with nothing else for weeks, since the Japanese had invented a workable substitute to taking from humans. When that day came, I could find a place and settle down after decades of wandering, I could find people who would talk to me and know me and not fear me overmuch, and then my loneliness might be over. But tonight I had no option. I had to stay in the shadows with my untouched glass of red wine, I had to seek out someone to feed from and then erase all traces of myself from their mind, so they awoke with only a feeling of weakness explained by alcohol and marks on their body blamed on insect bites.

I never killed anymore, those days were long past. Seduction, trickery and the power of my mind ensured that I did little harm and did not have to despise myself. Perhaps if I was patient this night I could find someone to satisfy my other craving, the one that was always brought on by bloodlust. A woman, warm and soft and responsive; though I hated to make love to someone under my glamour, knowing they were only experiencing pleasure from my touch because I had forced them to comply. It was a rare thing to find a human who did not shrink from me in bed, knowing they were with a vampire.

I had scanned every female in the club over the last hour and only found one that might satisfy my needs, either with full knowledge or under my spell. She was alone like myself, her two companions having paired off with men from a persistent crowd of admirers that had surrounded the trio at the bar. Unlike her friends and many other female humans of this shallow age, she had not starved herself into a fashionable clothes hanger, or ruined her body with an excess of fast food. She was a ripe armful of curves under her short lilac dress, her bare legs and arms and decolletage a light honey colour from the sun. Her dark, wavy hair swung loose, a glass of wine was constantly twirled between her small fingers as her gaze swept around the room, looking at everything and nothing, her red shoes tapping idly.

Twice I had caught her clear green eyes looking at me from across the dance floor. Lovely eyes. They were thoughtful, as if she was puzzling over something, not clouded with drink or dark with indiscriminate lust. I never saw her look at another man the whole evening, and while they asked she permitted none of them to buy her a drink or lead her into a dance, though her feet clearly wanted to. My mild interest grew into a nagging curiosity. I wondered what she smelled like, whether her skin was as silky and fine as it looked from afar, her lips just as full and soft. And most of all, I wondered how she would taste. All humans tasted different; some were bland, or even bitter and unpleasant, and some were so rich and sweet it was difficult to stop taking. She looked like such a one.

My need to find nourishment was clawing at my insides now, watching the strange lady, enjoying her beauty, her aloofness, remembering the cool appraisal of her catlike eyes. Finally I straightened from my slouch against the wall of the club, smoothing my black jacket over my shirt cuffs, running my fingers through my unruly hair, getting ready to make my approach. I hoped the noise and dim light would distract her from looking at my deathly white skin too closely, the red circles around my eyes; she was an observant human. But before I could move my view of her was blocked by another suitor. I heard the man's crude words and her withering response, the splash of wine being thrown into the man's face, I felt the rumble of a long unused laugh in my chest. As I watched, the man cursed and spluttered and the woman rose from her stool and swept past regally, her full skirts falling neatly to her knees. She had a red flower tucked behind one ear; I caught its sweet scent as she drew closer, and to my surprise she did not turn and head for the door but straight towards me, the same thoughtful look on her pretty face.

I raised one brow in enquiry as she came into my orbit, the warmth she emitted tickling my nose, immediately I felt a lurch of raw need in my core, though my stance remained still and wary. Her pink lips quirked in a shy little smile that contradicted the boldness of her opening words. 'You look lonely,' she said calmly. 'I am also lonely, and I want to dance at least once before I go home. Would you dance with me and save me from being a wallflower?'

I was taken aback, but pleased. I smiled at her quizzically, then fished for words that would both charm her and warn her she may have bitten off more than she could chew, so to speak. 'Many men have approached you tonight and you have refused them all. I am honoured, but tell me, why do you ask this of me? I may be just as objectionable as that gentleman you just assaulted.'

As I spoke, she did a delightful thing. Her green eyes fluttered closed, and I saw her shiver, and when she opened her lids her pupils had widened, I had not used any glamour on her and yet she looked entranced. She laughed shakily before answering. 'Because you are lonely, as I said. And you don't seem a total idiot. And because you have a beautiful voice.'

I studied her face for a moment, noting the roses in her cheeks, the bold curve of her smile, the ripe scent of her body causing my hunger to surge like the ocean. The coterie of musicians on the stage had begun to play a slow, smoky tune, I took the woman's hand and led her out onto the floor. She made no comment at the cold touch of my skin, but fell into a fluid step, our fingers lacing together, a modest amount of space held between our bodies. She was silent, her eyes closed in enjoyment and concentration. She was light of foot, and my hunter's stance began to ease off as I began to enjoy myself as well, though my gaze crept over the slim column of her neck, drawn particularly to the artery fluttering beneath her skin, and then downwards to the soft abundance of her bosom under the sleeveless dress. She could fulfil both my needs this night, if I only I did not have to glamour her, if only I could take her body and her blood with her full knowledge and enjoyment. But she wasn't a hardened whore, someone who could endure the attentions of a monster without flinching. Despite her bold actions and obvious attraction to me, I knew I held a lady in my grasp.

But as I plotted how I would have her the music changed. The raunchy blues tempo turning our steps from decorous to brazen in order to keep up, the chanteuse fronting the band wailing a stream of suggestive words into the microphone. The lady's eyes opened and they looked up into my face, full of mischief. She sunk into my arms, her body pressed tightly against mine, her hips swaying. It was torture, fighting to keep my lust under control at her proximity and seductive movements. I was being teased by her lively eyes, her heat, the way she threw her head back and let her hair fan out, her throat exposed to me. My fangs wanted to run out, my member was stirring. My hands were clawing at her bare back and still she did not comment at my coldness, though I could feel her skin prickle with gooseflesh. Bodies moved around us and against us as the dance floor filled, but only she took my attention, her bewitching face and the soft weight of her curves melting into the hardness of my torso. Now would be the perfect time to reach into her mind and bring her in thrall, but before I could she swung away from me, snatching my hand from her back and twirling herself out of my grasp, her lips parting in a girlish giggle.

The old song ended with a crash of piano keys and the woman curtsied clumsily before looking up through her tumbled hair. 'Thank you for the dance, sir. I can go home happy now,' she said graciously, and turned to leave, hurrying for the door in her red heels while I stood there gaping like a numbskull. What game was she playing? The dark look she threw me over her shoulder as she exited answered my question. A game of pursuit. She was either very foolish or very brave, as with a human man this was very unwise and with myself, even more so. Very well, I would give her five minutes to think she had escaped me before showing her the extent of her recklessness.

I merged with the shadows again, picking up my wine and pretending to drink it, then slipping out into the street after a decent interval. The jazz club was located in a long, narrow alleyway, the cobblestones washed clean from a recent summer shower. I sniffed the thick, cloying air and turned right, moving at human speed until I was out of sight of people, then took a branching alley to the left, vaulting the wall at the end without effort. Hitting the ground as silently as I could, I followed the woman's scent along the empty street. A crimson spot on the ground made me pause for a moment. I picked up the flower that had fallen from her hair, or had been deliberately dropped. Sure enough, my senses had not failed me. I saw the flick of lilac skirts disappearing around the corner. I was a puff of air, a confusing blur to the few intoxicated people in the next street. I was a black-clad vision appearing in front of the woman, the flower in my hand. She squeaked and looked around quickly, but there was no one who could come to her aid. 'You dropped something, ma'am,' I said coolly, then swept down upon her, drawing her into a doorway in a rush of movement.

Her eyes grew wide as saucers as I backed her against the glass door, a blend of fright, desire and confusion in their green depths. 'Wha...what are you?' She gasped, her heart thudding erratically through our layers of clothing, a call as stirring as music to the hunter that lurked inside me. I brought my face down into the curve of her neck, breathing deep, taking in the strong, unique tang of her life force, sweet and sharp, like good champagne. She let out a little moan and I felt the heat of her body flare up, and I was unable to resist finding her lips, taking them hungrily. She resisted at first, then yielded, her mouth opening to tangle with mine.

I felt dizzy at the warmth and wetness of her lips and probing tongue, forgetting my thirst for her blood and longing for a different kind of wetness, wrapped around me tightly like a vice. 'I am a monster,' I whispered as I dragged myself away, my fangs emerging with a click. Her lids opened and she saw, and knew me for what I was, but she did not scream or struggle. She studied me, like I was a riddle she was pleased to have solved, and her hands did not move from their place on my shoulders.

'I really don't think you are,' she said, in that same calm voice in which she had asked me to dance. This confused, annoyed and delighted me all at once. I blinked for a moment, drawing back slightly from her frozen figure. Her hands fell away and fiddled nervously with her hair, I knew she was wondering whether her instinct to trust me might be wrong.

'You are a very foolish...human,' I drawled significantly. 'Why are you not afraid of me? You should be afraid.'

The woman tilted her head to one side, her green eyes narrowing. 'I live in New Orleans. Don't you think I have heard enough rumours to wonder whether there is any truth to them?' She replied, her chest rising in a tense, shuddering breath. 'I knew the moment I saw you, you weren't normal. I should have stayed away, but there was a sadness in your eyes, something sweet too, and it called to me.' She looked away, her blushes visible in the gloom of the shop doorway. Her words had sliced through the monster's shell, and for a moment I felt as vulnerable as she looked. Though I had fully intended to take her and feed from her I was now having second thoughts. For her bravery, for the glimmer of warmth and interest she was showing me, I should let her go free. I stepped back and retracted my fangs, getting reading to fade into the night and find another victim. But at the sound and movement she turned back, her small hand reaching up to stroke my cheek gingerly. 'If...if I took you home with me tonight, what would happen?' She asked quietly, looking for honesty, either ignorant of the fact I could tear her to pieces here and now, or choosing to ignore it in favour of her desire and curiosity.

But she was quite right- I was not a monster, not anymore, and I wanted her very much, wanted a few brief hours of bliss before I had to go back to the cold, lonely ground, and she was left in her lonely bed, satisfied but thinking I was nothing but a fevered dream. I took her face gently between my hands, laying a small kiss on her parted lips. 'Pleasure and some pain, but not death. You are right...you are safe with me.'

**


	2. Chapter 2

**Part Two**

On the walk to her apartment the woman held my hand, as if we were two old lovers returning from a date instead of two strangers on a dark assignation. She did not assault me with a barrage of questions about what I was, as I was expecting, but chatted lightly of carefully neutral things, and though my skills at conversation with normal folk were somewhat rusty, within minutes I ceased my grunting and started to respond. The summer weather, the music that has been played in the jazz club, the upcoming elections, which I of course could not vote in...she was obviously somewhat agitated beneath her calm exterior and witty words, her green eyes never meeting mine but skittering away quickly whenever I caught her looking at me, and her hand gripped mine so tightly I got the distinct impression she was stopping herself from running away. So when we reached her apartment block, a crumbling, yellow painted building in the outskirts of the French Quarter, I turned to her, putting my hands on her narrow shoulders and forcing her to look into my face.

'You have to invite me in, or I cannot enter,' I said, hoping this vital piece of information would soothe. 'And if you choose to invite me, you can rescind my invitation at any time and I must leave.' The last part was not something a vampire usually imparted to a potential victim, but though I was hungry I wanted this to be on her terms, and I did not want her too frightened of me. A small amount of fear would add piquancy to the experience for the both of us, something she was obviously looking for, but too much and she would not relax.

A wave of relief washed over her arresting face, and she laughed abruptly. 'So that particular myth is true, then,' she said, pleased, and then she reached in her dangling purse for her keys. I let her go, waiting expectantly as she unlocked the heavy wooden door. 'Please come in. It's a long haul to the top and the damn elevator is not working. Sorry about that.' I raised my brows at her as I passed, looking down at her ridiculously high shoes, then up at narrow, steep staircase. She laughed again, a sweet sound that tugged at the corners of my mouth. 'Yeah, silly huh? I almost fell over on my way out tonight.'

'Allow me,' I said smoothly, taking her waist and hoisting her up off the scuffed floorboards. She squealed and protested as I held her against my chest and began to climb the stairs, but her face was pink and radiant. At her breathless direction I took her swiftly to the sixth floor, setting her gently down in front of her apartment door.

'Wow, they don't make them like you anymore,' she said dryly after collecting herself, flicking her eyes at me in frank appreciation before letting herself in. 'Again, please come inside.'

I paused to watch her when I closed the door behind me, moving around her modest home, trying to decipher what kind of person she was from her actions and surroundings. She kicked off her shoes and swayed over to the dining table, a small bright figure in a jewel box of a room, crammed with colour and a jumble of tasteful possessions. It was a one room apartment with french doors leading to a tiny, wrought-iron balcony, and a kitchen against one wall. The furniture was old and battered yet elegant, the walls hung with tattered art prints, scarves and rough sketches obviously done by the lady herself. An enormous bookcase covered one wall, groaning under the weight of cheap novels, political tomes and the kind of literature I preferred myself. As I stood there and absorbed it all, liking what I saw, the woman was lingering at the dining table, pouring herself a glass of wine and taking a generous sip, then checking her answering machine for messages.

She was avoiding me again, either teasing me or regretting her decision. After her dithering stretched from a minute to several I felt a twinge of impatience, knowing I had a scant few hours before I felt the pull of the sun. I would have to try a little force to push past her nerves and game playing. Silently I approached at my accustomed speed, and at the stirring of the air she whirled around with a gasp, her free hand darting to her throat. She smiled edgily. 'Jesus! You like scaring people, don't you?'

I moved closer to her warmth and softness, drawn to it like a moth to a flame, my voice lowering to a rumble. 'It is one of the benefits of my condition,' I said slyly, taking the glass from her hand and putting it down, my eyes never leaving her upturned face, twitching with a flare of lust at the way she was biting her lower lip. 'I certainly like scaring you, and I suspect you don't mind overmuch.'

She did not mind at all. In fact, she seemed to swoon when I drew her into my arms, her mouth opening in an urgent moan that I silenced with a kiss, her soft body going as limp as a rag doll. Sweet, hot, moist, submissive; she fell backwards as I bore down upon her, devouring her lips and skimming my hands over her breasts and flanks, her buttocks, her own shaking hands worming under my jacket and tugging at my shirt. They burnt like brands on the cold skin of my lower back, and I immediately longed to be naked with her, to feel her limbs burning me, twined around my hard, lifeless body, her heart fluttering like a trapped bird against my silent chest. I found the zipper on her dress, yanking it down her back smoothly. The stiff fabric slid off her torso, and one tug brought it puddling at her bare feet.

She did not shrink or cover herself when I freed her mouth and bent my head to look. Her darkened eyes gazed at me expectantly, boldly, a shudder rippling across her honeyed skin as my hands traced the shape of her beautiful, full breasts, the soft rise of her belly, halting at the brief scrap of lace covering her loins. The flesh tightened under my touch, reacting to the cool friction, and my lust for her flared up like a bonfire, I almost felt alive. She was a morsel. My lips found the pulsing spot on her neck, and she whimpered softly. I fought hard against the urge to extend my fangs, wanting to play the lover until she was in such a state of arousal that my bite was pleasure as well as pain. I would not glamour her until it was time for me to leave, and even a neat and considerate bite would sting a coherent human. I wondered whether I could contain myself when it finally came for the moment to feed, I was near starved, and I could sense her flavour so strongly it was almost as if she had fairy blood in her veins. I must not lose control.

I dropped kisses all over her throat, then found her plump lips again, teasing them lightly with my tongue, my hands mapping her curves and weighing her breasts while she fumbled at the buttons of my shirt. I shrugged off my upper clothing in a blur of movement and squeezed her tight against my bare chest. She was so soft and supple, a little rumble of contentment sounded in my throat, and my member jumped under the clumsy fingers that struggled with my belt and zipper. She pulled away from my mouth with a shuddering breath of air, her long hair tickling and her moist lips trailing over my neck, my shoulders. Assertively she buried her face in my chest, her tongue darting out to tease my nipples while her hands slid inside my open trousers, finding nothing except a hard, throbbing organ. She made a flattering gasping noise when her hot fingers closed around me, her eyes flicking upwards, inviting and expressive.

I lost my fight with my dual lust at that instant, her mouth and hands making my fangs extrude, but she was too roused to react with fright. There was tinge of wariness in her face, but she bravely lifted her hand from my hip and touched a finger to my mouth, halting my attempt to back away and give her space. 'Don't...I'm not scared...much,' she breathed, tracing my lips delicately, then pressing her fingertip against one tooth. She hissed as the sharp point broke her skin, a drop of blood appearing in an instant. 'Oh wow.' She went to jerk her hand away, spooked, but then checked herself, making me reel with what she did next. She slipped the finger between my lips, and I took the first taste of her, sucking on the tiny wound automatically, and her blood was everything I had hoped for. Our eyes locked as she drew the digit from my lips slowly, one second of permission given and received, and I let the monster loose, hoping she could trust me and I could trust myself.

All my gallant plans for ensuring she was fully ready before taking her flew out the open windows. The wine glass, the answering machine and a vase of flowers went crashing to the floor, the woman, my willing victim, screamed when I ripped her undergarment from her hips and plunged my fingers inside her dripping sex, testing her wetness while pushing her backwards across the table. She could not see me move as I finished disrobing with one hand, I was as swift as a shadow, keeping my fingers busy stroking her reckless lust for me, her awkward sprawl making it difficult to have a sudden change of heart and leap away. Not that she had any intention of doing so; she moaned when I dragged her close, removing my hand and wrapping her legs around my hips, and lifting her up by the shoulder so she was positioned to receive me. I entered her roughly, growling in pure enjoyment as I brought her tight, velvet sheath soundly down upon my length.

Her face contorted in blend of ecstasy and agony, a sign that only encouraged me to go deeper. Another frenzied scream echoed around the room and her arms lifted to link around my shoulders. A single drop of sweat beaded on her neck and trickled down between her breasts, and I followed it with my tongue, slowing my movements inside her to absorb the powerful sensations coursing through me, and then I could hold back from feeding no longer.

Holding her balanced on the edge of the table with one hand, my other hand snatched at her hair, using it to tilt her head sideways. I kissed the thudding spot on her throat first; laving it with my tongue, and she grew perfectly still, only my small rocking movements working my member against the entrance to her womb. Her taut walls clenched around me like a fist, sweet tension that caused me to growl before I struck, as cleanly as I could. A high, keening cry of pain barely registered, I held her imprisoned, withdrawing my fangs from her neck and closing my lips around the puncture marks, sucking, lapping, taking mouthfuls of her pooling blood. I felt it trickle sweetly and thickly down my throat, sending sparks through my dead veins, heat flushing and prickling all over my body.

The woman's cry cut off in a strangled groan, and she began to writhe, circling her hips, gasping and whining as the pleasure surprised her suddenly. Four mouthfuls, five, six, and I stopped, not wanting to weaken her too much, but oh, she was delicious. I must have more, perhaps tonight. I checked on her quickly as I lifted my face from her wounded throat, swirling my tongue over the marks to seal them closed. Her green eyes were glassy and black with desire, her lips red and full, her nipples raised and her skin a rosy pink, no sign of wanness or terror in her glowing face. One need satisfied, I could finish with the other. I leaned in to kiss her carefully, cleaning my lips before I did so, and she whimpered impatiently, jerking her hips against mine. The wetness enveloping my shaft had increased, and the heat of her was so intense it made me hiss. She was teetering on the edge of climax, greedy for it. Very well, she had given me her blood and nourished me, I would give her what she wanted. And she would never forget it, if I let her remember.

Some women liked to be made love to, slowly and tenderly, with respect and restraint. Other women liked to be taken hard, exposed, twisted and pinched and penetrated deeply and cruelly. I had known hundreds of women in the decades I had walked the earth unseen, and I had taken this woman's essence inside me now. I knew her in a strange way, and so I knew exactly what type of woman she was. Not moving from my place inside her I cupped her buttocks to lift her from the table surface, walking her over to the bed in the corner, murmuring into her lips as I went. I told her how good she tasted, and she sighed. I told her crudely how tight she was and how hard I wanted to fuck her, and she sobbed. I tossed her on the red coverlet and lifted her right leg to balance on my shoulder, then thrust into her again viciously, like a soldier with a bayonet. Instinctively her other leg curled around my flanks and she arched her back, her arms stretching out across the mattress, and hands fisting the covers to absorb the bruising movements.

Her face was hidden by her streaming hair, but I knew she was in heaven, the noises she was making, the slap of her pelvis meeting every solid thrust I gave her. Her whole body was an image of complete abandonment, this courageous, foolish, open woman, my lover for the night, who pleased me more than any human I had enticed in a very long time. I reached for the place of our joining and found the tiny bundle of nerves between her parted folds and pinched it, tweaked it, circled it, and was rewarded by a long shriek and then the delightful ripple of her walls convulsing around me in climax. As I thought, she had been so close it had taken very little to bring it forth. I did not let her lie back and enjoy it receding, but continued on, making her pleasure turn to griping discomfort and back to rising pleasure again. Had I possessed the control, I could have made her climax over and over until I alllowed myself release, but there was something about the feel of her, her taste and smell and the wild nature of her responses that tested me sorely.

It was all too good, the pressure in my loins building and building, the urge to sink my fangs into her flesh once more tugging at my mind. I shrugged her leg from my shoulder and leaned over her perspiring form, reaching underneath her thighs to lift her from the bed, angled just so, allowing me to slide within her as forcefully as possible and yet still get access to her breasts, her lips and her neck. She clawed strands of hair from her face and ran her hands down my back, grasping my backside to encourage my rough movements, her lips finding mine, her succulent mouth nipping, her tongue darting between my fangs. I kept returning to her kisses, though her nipples lured me away, I suckled at them gingerly, trying not to pierce her sensitive skin with another set of bite marks that would take days to heal.

She babbled nonsense words, a mix of curses and pleas, the temperature of her body, the slickness of her internal muscles massaging and gripping me, signalling she was once again very close to orgasm. Her heart was racing like the wind, I could hear the surge of her blood pumping through her veins, and the fierce delight I took in her tight body combined with the base urge to feed, bringing me to the abyss along with her. I timed it right, finding the marks on her throat and breaking through the half-healed skin, groaning and growling like a beast as her blood welled up for me, at the very moment she let go. A maelstrom of ripples around my length, the hot taste of her life force on my tongue, her hoarse cries and I convulsed with climax, filling her depths with my own essence, seeing stars and spots behind my eyelids, the wonderful pulse of fulfillment wracking my body from head to toe.

I knew then, a flash of clarity amidst all the madness of release, that I would not wipe myself from her mind before I left for my temporary home. I would take the enormous risk and keep her for myself, knowing my secret. I could not walk away and never see her again, I would return to her, hoping she would welcome me into her bed once more. For I was not satisfied with just one night. She had risked her life to reach out to me, to give and take pleasure, and she had demonstrated her trust in a stranger based on her instincts. I could trust her to keep silent and then I could have many more nights with her, exploring her limits and feeding off her delicious blood. I might even talk to her properly, ease my loneliness with not just her body but her mind as well. I might even tell her my name.

**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Another short chapter, they get meatier from here on in. Thanks for reading and special thanks to those who comment, you are awesome. **_

**

**Part Three**

The meeting at the Queen's palace had gone on for much longer than expected, and had been considerably more acrimonious than I cared for. By the time I managed to extricate myself it was past midnight, and I was in an irritable mood. A roomful of vampires snapping and snarling at each other was never an experience I much enjoyed, particularly when I found myself at the unpopular end of the debate. And now Juliet would most likely be asleep. I should be a gentleman and leave her to her rest, but I needed her tonight, her soothing presence and her inviting body. I needed to hide myself in her bed and forget about blasted political wrangling and the same tiresome arguments that had dogged me for weeks. Shall we, shall we not...the enlightened vampire wishing for a real place in the world versus the antiquated beast who wished to stay in the shadows preying on humans for the rest of eternity.

The world still remained oblivious to the underground movement to bring my kind out into the open, including my own personal connection to daylight and normality. I had told my lover some things about myself, such as my age, name, likes and dislikes, but nothing of the details of my misbegotten brethren and what was currently being planned for in every corner of the planet. I wanted to keep her far away from that environment, to keep her safe from harm and from being labelled a pet, or a blood whore, or any of the other charming labels given to the small number of humans that knew of our race and our activities. And I valued the little haven of her apartment, the minutiae of her everyday life that she shared with me, her sly sense of humour, her frank sensuality and eagerness for my attentions. I would do nothing to spoil it.

For two weeks now I had walked this same route through the dark city to her home, knocking on her door and, on one memorable occasion, climbing up to her balcony and slipping into her bed while she slept. She had woken up murmuring my name and opened herself to me instantly, knowing it was only her strange lover and not a random intruder. I would do the same tonight to surprise her, since she had so enjoyed the experience last time. It was somewhat of a challenge, shimmying up drain pipes and window sills without being seen, but I liked to test my physical skills near as much as I liked giving my human a mild scare. I had dressed in boots and jeans before leaving my rented house, not formal clothing, so it should be easier than last time, when I had been wearing my good suit.

Rounding the corner into Juliet's quiet, semi-residential street, I felt a hum of anticipation in my core, the hunger and desire quickening my pace. At the palace, I had sampled some of the synthetic blood that was being circulated among the community, and it had knocked back some of my appetite, but it had tasted vile compared to human blood, especially my lover's. I could imagine myself surviving on it and restricting my feeding to one companion, but others were not convinced of the idea at all, hence all the arguments at the meeting. I shrugged them off when I slipped into the shadow of the apartment block, deciding not to think about the Great Revelation debate again until I had to. I had more pleasant things on my mind now.

After checking for passing humans and light filled windows I began to scale the building, reaching Juliet's apartment without incident a minute later, apart from one startling moment when a fat tabby cat hissed at me from a nearby balcony. The french doors were open to the night, the air conditioner still not repaired by the slovenly landlord, and as I crept inside the thick, sultry air of the room hit me like a slap to the face, permeated with her unique scent. My irritable tension uncoiling and shedding clothes as I moved, I approached the lamp lit bed, finding my human naked and dead to the world under a single sheet, her lovely, heavy breasts on display, arms askew and her dark, silky hair spread out on the pillows. Her smooth brow wrinkled as she sensed someone near, but she did not awake until I slid under the sheet next to her, my coldness seeping into her bare skin.

I drew her into my embrace, and she sighed, turning instinctively to tuck her head into the crook of my shoulder. 'Mmm, that's nice,' she mumbled, 'It's like cuddling the refrigerator.' I chuckled silently, and her lips pecked clumsily at my cheek. 'You have no idea how nice it is in this damn heat, Bill...' She propped herself up on her side to look down into my face, her green eyes flickering with desire under the haze of sleep. 'Wait...you snuck in here again? One day I'm going to stay up all night on the balcony to try and catch you doing it, oh Romeo. I really want to see how the hell you manage it.'

I chuckled again and tried to look modest, immediately feeling my spirits lighten. Her fingertips traced the line of my jaw, then danced over my lips, which she had told me were beautiful, before seeking out my hair, running through it lightly. They were stained with ink from drawing, either from her sketches or her job as an architect. She denied any talent at both but I had seen her work and admired it greatly.

I wonder how she hid the marks on her neck from her work colleagues? Perhaps a scarf or a necklace, for I had left a fresh set there two nights ago, and the first ones I had given her were still visible. I usually fed from her in less visible places, but sometimes I could not help myself, and she never protested. She never denied me anything, her body was my playground and she derived great pleasure in giving it to me. 'Why are you so late anyway?' She said idly, not sounding particularly mad but covering her mouth when she yawned suddenly. 'I thought you were coming around eleven.'

I had been disturbing her rest a lot lately, keeping her up until the small hours of the morning. 'I had a meeting, and it went on longer than I expected,' I said. 'I apologise, I should not have awoken you.' I reached up to cup her tired little face, stroking it gently, noticing her paleness. I hoped she had been taking her vitamins as I had advised. If I gave her my blood the marks on her body would heal and she would feel rejuvenated, but I was unsure as to whether I was ready to bond with her yet, open myself to her emotions and share more of the closely guarded secrets of my kind.

She wrinkled her nose in dismissal, and then moved to straddle me comfortably, smiling mischievously as she settled her bare bottom on my lower stomach, making my member stir to hardness. 'Don't be silly, I'll just drink a gallon of coffee in the morning,' she shrugged, swooping down to kiss my forehead. 'Mmm...you smell good...look pretty good too.' She sat up again before I could snatch at her hair and drag her close for a proper kiss. My desire was rising fast under the weight of her soft warmth, but she was still in a questioning mood. 'What's a meeting with a bunch of vampires like?' She said bemusedly.

I rolled my eyes. 'You would not like it. It is a very impolite, noisy and vicious experience. I could not wait to get out of there,' I said dryly. Juliet snorted, and then hesitated, on the verge of asking another question, but then she shrugged again and said something flippant about her workplace meetings being very similar. She really did not want to know too much about my life, which was unusual for a human, perhaps she was afraid that she would not like what she heard. I was glad of it. I knew she was with me for the thrill of danger, for companionship without emotional entanglements, and for sexual pleasure, but since I sought similar things from her I could not feel used, and she was not a superficial woman, but a wise one. There was a sweet thread of affection that graced our dark and fevered encounters, and I knew enough about her to know she wasn't a thoughtless slattern who sold herself cheap, despite her delightful lack of inhibitions in bed.

I smiled at her with genuine warmth, with only a hint of practiced seduction in my intent, and I was enfolded in a cloud of shadowy hair as she leaned in to claim my mouth, giving me the full length of her body as she stretched out above me. She was sticky with the summer heat, but smelled of jasmine soap from a recent shower, and her breath of mint; both blended with the warm flavour of her blood hissing underneath her fine skin, and the sudden, sharp tang of her arousal. Animal that I was, her scent was as intoxicating as her plump lips and soft curves. I wanted to taste her, probe her, fill her...I wanted to toy with her and bite her; to lose myself in her, with only her moans and cries echoing in my mind instead of violent arguments and many lifetimes of bitter thoughts. My hands glided down her back and sunk into her rounded buttocks, I pressed her against my hardness, showing her what I had for her, and when she came up for air I bent my head to her dangling breasts, engulfing her nipples in turn, sucking hard, making her whimper and grind down onto me.

My member was mere inches from her tight opening, one jerk of my hips upwards and I could be inside her, but I held back, wanting to taste her juices and explore her delicate flesh. I would bring her to orgasm and feed and then take her body when she was boneless and pliant and so marvelously hot the first thrust would warm me inside and out. My fangs had not yet emerged, allowing me to nibble and pull at her nipples without injury, but when I freed one taut, crimson peak to roll her on her back she gasped and ducked her head to my neck, her moist lips dragging across the chilly skin and her harmless teeth nipping at me harshly. A stab of pure lust at her rough caresses made them pop; and I flipped her fast, pinning her hands to the mattress and growling down into her startled face. I was quite gratified by her little shriek, and I could not resist a leer, playing the predator and enjoying the way her dilated eyes widened and her chest heaved.

The background tempo of her heart increased in pace, and she murmured something cross which I barely head, drawn downwards by that erratic pitter pat and the sharp scent of her wetness. No flimsy undergarment shielded her from my greedy gaze, and no dark curls; she was a very modern woman despite her interest in the old fashioned, and what baffled me to begin with I now appreciated greatly. Her hairless flesh was as soft as the petals of a flower, and easy to access with my mouth without nicking or grazing her with my teeth. I spread her thighs wide and dipped my head, running my tongue down one side of her nether lips, then the other, groaning at her sweet-salt flavour. She bucked upwards into my face, then gentle moans fell from her gaping mouth as I set to work in earnest. Next to the taste of blood, the only other taste left to me was this; a woman's nectar. I had grown adept at giving great pleasure with my mouth over the years and enjoyed doing so, and this woman was as succulent and delicious as a ripe peach.

Using my tongue, lips and probing fingers, I had my human cooing like a dove, then whining and thrashing like a whore. I was most terribly hard, as solid as bone, and the whoosh of her pumping blood so close to my ear was sending me near crazed. I focused on the small bud above her swollen, slick opening, circling it teasingly and then flicking it roughly, two fingers pushing inside her tense grip and curling upwards, finding the spot on her upper wall that heightened her pleasure. A third finger I used to invade her back passage, giving her a touch of pain to add to the experience, finding her even tighter and hotter in that forbidden place. For a brief, dark moment I imagined what it would be like to enter her from the rear and whether she would welcome such a dominant move, and my hand thrust into her harder as the black delight of my thoughts spurred me on. She cried out my name, her back arching to absorb the cruel movements. 'Ohh Bill...yes, oh yes, I'm...'

She had no self control when it came to the blinding moment of climax, and was unable to hold back. Her yielding flesh broke into a storm of sweet flutters and pulses under my touch, and growling savagely in my throat, I whipped my head around, listening intently to her unfettered delight and my nagging hunger, striking neatly into the butter soft flesh of her inner thigh and latching on to feed. Her blood spurted into my mouth and dribbled down my chin while my fingers stroked her insides, coaxing out her orgasm to a length that left her gasping for breath and in no pain from my bite. It was my favourite place to take my fill, the taste of her arousal thick on my tongue, mixed with her satisfying blood and her obvious ecstasy; my whole body hummed with pure contentment, the ache in my groin anticipation rather than an annoyance.

I would love her body all night in every way that pleased her and me, until her flesh was raw and she was begging me to spare her, and then I would allow myself one precious hour of holding her close while she slept. I would pretend that I was human again, that I could love and be loved, that I could wake with her in the morning instead of slinking away like a thief in the night. I would whisper to her silently all the things about myself I could never tell her and pretend that she listened and cared, and forgave. Sated, relaxed, safe in the warm cocoon on her bed and her sleeping presence, I would know some semblance of happiness. As I lapped the trickles of blood from her quivering thigh and sealed the fresh marks closed, I could hear myself purring in my chest, a smile tugging at my lips.

**


	4. Chapter 4

**Part Four **

A week later, and I was in a much better humour on my nightly walk to Juliet's home. The meeting at the palace had gone well; the debate finally over and only the preparations for the grand announcement left to discuss among the Louisiana vampires. Most of the men and women of rank, sheriffs and investigators, had grudgingly given way to the pro revelation argument, and all was ready for the simultaneous broadcast across the world that we were not mere myth and rumour, but a reality. There would no doubt be reprisals from terrified and outraged humans; stakings and burnings. I would make sure to go to ground for a few days with a supply of synthetic blood until the furore had died down. I was intending to tell Juliet that I would be out of town for a week so she would not worry, but I would not tell her of the impending announcement; my determination to keep her out of my politics and away from my brethren making up my mind. Though she might be angry when I returned to her, having seen the television broadcast and not been informed by myself what was coming. All women liked to know their menfolks doings, even she, with her reluctance to ask too many questions. I would miss her in my absence, and I hoped she would not be too displeased with me when I returned. I would tell her it was for her own safety, and then distract her with kisses and caresses and hope for the best.

But as I strode through the city streets at human speed, there being too many people around at this hour to move at my normal pace and not arouse suspicion, I began to feel a familiar prickling on the back of my neck, a predator's sense of being tracked by another of my kind. Each time I whirled around I saw nothing, a growing sense of unease building that the separation of Juliet from my world might be coming to an end. I should turn around and head for home, or another destination, but I was hungry for my woman, and she was expecting me, and the tracker might follow me around all night out of spiteful boredom, preventing me from going to her at all. Vampires get bored very easily, having an eternity with little to do except seduce and take, so it might be more constructive to see the tracker off, in case he or she was determined to follow me around until they discovered the intriguing details of my feeding habits.

My mood sunk into irritation and worry, and I slowed my pace, taking side streets at random in a vain attempt to shake the stalker off. I may be forced to formally claim her, something I had done only rarely, as doing so required responsibility for the human's safety, the attention of my peers and a painful breaking of the ownership eventually. Glamouring a claimed human into forgetfulness was a much harder task if the companion had many weeks and months of memories and a strong emotional attachment to myself. And then there was the issue of a blood bond, which was such an intimate act for a vampire to undertake only the very special humans were given the honour. I cared for Juliet in my way, cherished her company as much as her blood and her body, but I had not thought to claim her as mine and bond with her as yet. I had enjoyed the fact she had no connection to my shadow world, and little apparent interest in it, and now this curious, ill mannered fool was tracking me across town, forcing me to make a snap decision as I drew closer and closer to the apartment block.

My fangs wanted to run out in anger, my muscles were coiling, ready to fight the interloper off, but as I paused to sniff the air again, I realised fighting would be useless. Male, large, much older than I, and extremely persistent and devious...a puff of warm breeze brought his scent clearly to my nose. I knew who it was, and my fangs popped in sheer frustration. I turned into my woman's street, knowing there was no point leading him on a wild goose chase, the Northman would make it his business to find out what he wanted to know, especially if it involved an attractive female. I approached to the lobby door and pressed the bell for Juliet's apartment, intending to tell her as soon as she opened the door not to invite the Sheriff in, unless she wanted to. Women loved Eric to distraction, even a sensible woman such as Juliet might swoon at the dangerous sight of him lurking in the doorway, or worse, floating in front of her windows, as the bastard could fly.

I restrained myself from punching the wall and leaving a fist sized hole in the plaster. I was definitely going to claim her, I would claim her and bond with her this very night, I did not want his large hands anywhere near her small, soft body, still worse his fangs. 'Good evening, old sport,' a mild voice intoned behind me, and I turned slowly, smiling politely but coolly, my fangs retracting before I did so.

I did not live in his area, which included my home town of Bon Temps, but I was still obliged to display deference as he was more than eight hundred years my senior. 'Hello Eric, to what do I owe this pleasure? I said, my ear cocked to the sound of bare feet on concrete steps high above. The blonde giant grinned mockingly, his expression and cliché vampire garb of black leather trousers and a long black coat belying the gentlemanly tone of his voice.

'Forgive me, Compton...mere curiosity made me follow you from the palace...I heard you had been spending a lot of time in this area and I was intrigued enough to find out what the attraction was.' He paused, his blue eyes looking me up and down as if I was a small, dull child who had wandered off unchaperoned. 'I thought it might have been a very good bookstore, but no...have you found a little human girl to play house with? I can hear her coming now, I can't wait to meet her.'

I had known Eric Northman for some time, and while our dealings were generally amicable, I deeply resented the fact he seemed to find me so endlessly entertaining; the way I conducted myself, refusing to revel in my vampire nature, not fornicating and killing and stealing to excess and trying keep one foot in the real world. He had come out in support of the revelation, but only because he could see the business opportunities inherent. He had little interest in humans beyond his basic needs and had no desire to live among them. Eric was mostly a traditionalist, and irresistible to human and vampire females as I had seen on many occasions. I tried to look as unruffled as possible at the prospect of him meeting Juliet. 'I have found a companion, yes.' I said casually. 'She fulfills my needs without the need for glamour, which is a rare thing.' But before I could go on, the front door swung open, revealing Juliet in a wine silk robe and nothing else, fragrant from a recent shower and her dark hair curling damply over her shoulders. I slipped across the threshold and put my arm around her waist protectively, wishing at that moment she wasn't so damn appealing.

She stared at Eric, who was left out on the street, her pretty, pointed face registering surprise, then extreme wariness. 'Bill, who's your friend?' she said edgily, moulding herself into my body for safety and comfort, shooting me a quick green glance.

Her unusual perceptiveness had put her on guard for danger, and I saw no glint of appreciation in her eyes as she turned her piercing gaze back to the handsome stranger. 'Juliet, this is Eric,' I said grudgingly. 'He was at my meeting tonight and was curious to meet you.'

'Hello darling, you're quite lovely.' Eric gave Juliet a charming smile, but his eyes crept over her lightly clad body as if sizing up a piece of goods. It was blatant and disrespectful, and she did not like it, her chin jerked up and her small frame went rigid. I groaned inwardly, hoping she was not thinking the worst of me; that I had brought a friend home for dinner. Then the pestilent Viking made the uncomfortable situation worse, turning to me and winking suggestively. 'You have done very well for yourself, Compton. Her scent is exquisite, and she looks almost as good. I don't suppose you would let me share in your spoils? We haven't done that in such a long time.'

If it was possible for me to blush, I would have. Juliet's mouth gaped open, her wide eyes swinging from me to him. 'No,' I hissed. 'She is mine, and I do not share my property.' The outraged girl next to me started to splutter, torn between calling me sexist, as modern women liked to call such behaviour, or snapping at Eric for being a boor.

I was so vexed my fangs were threatening to emerge at any second, I walked her backwards, getting ready to close the door in Eric's face. He was eyeing Juliet with great amusement. 'Perhaps the lady disagrees,' he said smoothly. 'Aren't you going to invite me in, sweetheart? It could be fun.' He was not rude enough to glamour her, which he could have done in an instant. Nor try and force the issue with me, as since I had declared her mine it would be a breach of our laws. He was merely teasing me, and hoping his good looks would be enough of a lure for her to consider his attentions.

'I don't think so,' Juliet said icily, grabbing the edge of the door. 'You look like nothing but trouble.' She slammed the door hard, leaving the Viking chuckling on the other side. 'What the fuck was that all about?' She demanded, unusually crude, breaking away from me to head for the stairs. I went to lift her into my arms. 'No thanks, don't carry me. I can walk.' She said crossly, turning her back on me and starting to climb. I sighed heavily and followed at a dragging pace, watching her round backside sway enticingly under her loose robe as she stomped upstairs, wondering childishly if I was going to get under that garment at any stage tonight.

*

She reminded me of a caged feline, the way she paced back and forth across the rug while I awkwardly explained how Eric had appeared at her door, and the ancient tradition of claiming her as my possession. She had poured herself a glass of wine as soon as she entered the apartment, and sipped at it hastily as I spoke. She was angry and offended, and frightened that her little secret dalliance was expanding to much more than she had been expecting the night she had asked me to dance. With a heavy heart I decided to give her the choice to break with me while she still could with ease.

I did not want to lose her. I stirred uncomfortably on the couch and forced the words from my lips after a short, thick silence. 'Do you want to end this? I could cease calling on you. Then you would no longer be mine and would be of little interest to my acquaintance. He wished to discover you and proposition you to irritate me...we have some history.' I paused, hoping what I said was true. There had been an eager glint in Eric's eyes I had not cared for at all, and her complete disinterest in him might be seen as a challenge. 'I do not want to entangle you in a situation you are not comfortable with, I never wanted that.'

She had stopped pacing, her face thunderous, then thoughtful, sorrowful, and finally panicked- a parade of emotions. She put her glass down on the coffee table and approached me, reaching out to touch my cheek with trembling fingers. 'No,' she said quietly. 'I could not stand to not see you, to not touch you...' Her lovely green eyes took in every inch of my face, then the rest of me, and she laughed lowly. 'It's totally barbaric, but I can live with it. I hate to admit, but it's kind of sexy...the thought of being yours.'

I felt a surge of relief at her change of mood. I took her hand, drawing her closer in. She sat astride my lap, her bare legs coming into view as the hem of her robe inched upwards. The scent of soap and water, sunlight, grass and her, rose up from her honeyed skin and silky hair. I relaxed a little, a smile of satisfaction crawling across my face; she was too besotted with me to let me go, though it was the much wiser path. 'There's a lot of you, isn't there?' she added, holding herself back from sinking into my embrace. 'Are vampires mostly like Eric, or like you?'

What was I like? She only saw the best side of me, she did not know the darkness, the struggle. 'I am afraid to say they are mostly like Eric,' I said dryly. 'And yes, there are many of us scattered around the Earth.' I did not add that those very vampires were due to announce themselves, though I probably could have trusted her to keep it secret. It was force of habit, to keep silent, to keep most of myself shut away.

Juliet frowned, as if she was dissatisfied with my answer. 'Well then, I don't want to meet any more vampires,' she said petulantly. 'He was an asshole, and a hundred times scarier than you.'

I chuckled lightly, ignoring the mild sting of her her words. I was not very scary, and that was why I was in the privileged position of being her lover. She was still perched on the edge of my knees, her eyes full of questions, so I tugged at the sash of her robe as a diversion, bringing her into my clutches, the silk sash unravelling in the process. I lowered my voice to a seductive purr. 'I will keep you to myself, though it will be hard...' My lips landed on her throat, my hands slipping under the robe to cup her breasts. 'For you are so beautiful, and smell delicious, and taste like sin and heaven mixed together...'

She gave a little, bubbling sigh, half desire, half frustration, and fitted her lips to mine, yielding to my tongue in an instant. My nails sunk into her firm flesh, and I suffered a burst of possessiveness. I wanted to tear her to pieces and leave her weak and gasping; marked as mine with my body, my scent and bite. Branded and selfishly kept for my pleasure only. In the daylight she was her own person, with a career, her art, her feisty independence, and her family and friends. But in the depths of night she was only my property, my sustenance, my sexual plaything.

Savage joy consumed me at declaring her my human, my feeble strains of humanity evaporating under the force of lust and anger. Her own aggravation and fear worked on her likewise, matching our needs together like two pieces of a puzzle. I devoured her mouth, she devoured mine. I bared my fangs at her, she smirked and tore my shirt from my torso, losing buttons in her haste to touch me. I pawed at her, groping her buttocks and spreading them to reach her delicate openings. She growled at me and grasped my member through my trousers, rubbing her palm in rough circles over the swelling bulge. I speared her with my hand, filling her with my fingers in both entrances with little regard for her readiness. She cried out in shock, her teeth sinking into my shoulder like a vixen, near drawing blood, then wriggled eagerly, her internal muscles gripping me tight. I snatched at her hair and bent her torso backwards so I could latch onto her right breast, fangs sinking deep, drawing at her blood and her nipple in rhythm with my fingers moving within her. Her wet heat increased, her ragged noises of pleasure growing wilder. I must have been hurting her but she did not care; I could sense the dangerous edge to her arousal and it drove me on, I growled and rumbled in my chest like a mindless beast, only halting my feeding so I could bite her again later.

She took a handful of my hair brought me in for a bloody kiss, tasting her own life on my lips and tongue. Her deft fingers had worked their way into my trousers, her fist close around my length, warm and tense, but I wanted more heat and moisture, her reddened lips stretched around my girth. I had her on her knees before me and her face in my lap in a flash, forcing myself into her mouth. Her moans vibrated delightfully in her throat, her little hands plucking and clawing at the upholstery of the couch; a stirring image of submission, naked at my feet and serving me, the light of the table lamp turning her curves to liquid gold. All went dark as I surrendered to pleasure, her tongue stroking and twirling expertly as her lips descended; slow at first, then faster and deeper. I was drawing close to the brink of losing control, the old me, who would take and ravage and kill, returning to add a touch of guilt to my enjoyment. I could control myself, I wasn't that creature anymore, I could act the dominant lover without damaging her frail human body, and she wanted it.

'Get up, my Juliet..I want to enter you,' I rasped, breaths I did not need to take sounding harshly in my ears as she ignored me and continued on, her teeth scraping along my entire length as she dived to take me all. I called out to a God I did not believe in, fighting against the urge to climax in her throat. 'Disobedient girl...get up.' I growled, knowing those words would drive her mad. She whimpered and let my member slide free from her hot mouth, her eyes completely black and blank as they gazed up at me helplessly. I had to pick her up and arrange her to my satisfaction, on her knees, her face hidden in her hands on the arm of the couch. I disrobed quickly and stood behind her, balancing my right foot on the cushions. Though I had touched her only crudely she was marvelously wet, a guttural shriek escaped her lips as I slid to the hilt, my eyes rolling at the perfect embrace of her depths. Her shapely backside lifted to receive me. I grasped her hips, leaving fingertip bruises on her flesh, bruises I would kiss and heal later, but for now she was a whore, and I a beast.

I moved so fast and deep within her she gave sharp cries of protest, pain mixed with her raging pleasure, the muscles of her back and shoulders tense as she braced herself against the couch for each shattering impact. I spoke rough words to her, knowing how much she loved my voice, stoking her fire with endearments, profanity, and orders to hold back and wait for me, wait for my permission to climax. I was wrapped in a dense blanket of elemental sensations, my body hot from my feeding and the throbbing pressure in my groin. I fought to keep my eyes open and focused on the vision of her cowering beneath me, her dusky pink folds glistening with nectar, spread open, beckoning me to withdraw and plunge deep with every stroke.

But though I revelled in taking her in this violent manner I wanted her close against me when we reached the end, to feel her heart racing and her walls fluttering and pulling at my length, her blood filling my mouth with its sweet, sharp flavour. I lifted her from the couch and returned to a sitting position, holding her cradled against my chest, my hand skimming down her sweat sheened belly to tease her hard nub. Our pace slowed to a languorous dance, my body arching up to reach the entrance to her womb, her hips rolling skillfully above me. She turned her head to kiss me with passion, my lover again and no longer just a whore. A swirl of confused emotions rose in my mind, affection and desire and fear of loneliness, of losing her and the pleasure that we shared. 'Now, darling,' I groaned, lifting my fingers to my mouth and biting down hard, bringing my sluggish blood beading to the surface. 'Drink from me...take from me as I take from you.'

She did not hesitate or protest, sucking the digits into her sweet mouth as I buried my face in her neck and bit again. We erupted together, fiery bliss rushing through our bodies and between our bodies. I could feel myself lost in her, my body and my blood, and she felt herself lost inside me. It went on and on, beyond the point I removed my fingers from her hungry mouth and dragged myself from the stream of blood running down her throat. A deep pulse of release trapped me within her core, I felt dizzy from the overwhelming pleasure, and as I rocked backwards to rest against the back of the couch my human slumped over in a dead faint, from blood loss or ecstasy, I did not know or care at that moment. I grabbed her before she could slip to the floor and rose to my feet, walking over to the bed with my member still buried inside her. I lay with her on the coverlet, holding her spooned in my embrace, waiting for her to rouse, not worried she was unwell, for I could now feel her presence inside my mind, a small bright jewel of contentment.

I felt no regrets about bonding with her, cherishing that presence and the warmth and light it gave to to the dark, cold corners of my soul. My tongue rasped idly over the bloodstains on her neck, and like magic the marks on her neck, her breasts and her inner thighs began to vanish as I watched her dream on. I did not love her, I did not know how, but I was grateful to whatever strange fate that had brought her to me, and I had no intention of letting her go, or letting someone else have her.

**


	5. Chapter 5

_Hi readers. You might have noticed this fic is quite pornalicious. Just a warning, this chapter is very explicit. You'll either find it a bit much, or love it. Proceed with caution, I'm getting to the non-smutty action eventually. Promise!_

_**_

**Part Five**

The night before the Great Revelation I left town, driving to an isolated patch of woodland upstate. I hid my new BMW under a pile of cut branches and debris and dug myself a grave nearby, going to ground with several bottles of the synthetic monstrosity which was to be marketed under the name Tru Blood. I stayed hidden for less time than I had planned, as it was very boring, lying in the dirt like a worm or wandering the woods, alone with myself. This far away, Juliet's presence was only a tiny flickering in the back of my mind, but I could feel her surprise, then her irritation and anger, which merged quickly into fear the longer I stayed away and more footage of violent protests and news of vampire slayings played out on television. I had no radio, no means of knowing the world's reaction, and that unsettled me near as much as feeling her faint emotions and missing her company.

Finally, after three days I climbed from the earth as dusk was setting into full night, too hungry and anxious to return to New Orleans to think about preserving my own hide from potential danger. I was keen to shower and change, call on the palace to receive an update from my Queen, and then visit my human and attempt to make amends for leaving her to fret about me and not telling her about the announcement. Remembering human females like flowers, I purchased two potted rosebushes and slipped like a cautious shadow through the city, leaving them on Juliet's balcony for her to find as a silent apology- lilac and red blooms, like the colours she was wearing the night we met. I had felt her delight through the bond when she had ventured out in the early morning to discover them there, and my sleep was disturbed for the rest of the day by flashes of emotions through my dreams that came from her; lust, anticipation, impatience, annoyance...it was tiring and very strange to me, to feel someone else's presence so strongly after so long without. I was not human, I did not feel with depth and variation and extremity anymore, but the small blood bond made me recall what it was like, and for some reason Juliet broadcasted more powerfully than the few humans I had bonded with in the past.

When I rose for the night and made myself presentable I moved swift, as eager as a courting suitor to call on her and ensure she was not still angry, my own usually steady and cool mind swirling with pleasure and worry. At first she had been sharp with me, sulking in the far corner of the couch where we had last made love, and shooting off questions and exclamations. I sat next to her and explained as much I was allowed to, and her hostility gave way to wonder, then enthusiasm. The reaction to the Revelation in America had been amazingly muted, with only a few incidents of murder and several protests by church groups in Washington and other large cities. In less civilised parts of the world things had not gone so well. Juliet seemed to think her fellow humans would get used to the idea of vampires living among them, like she already had, but accurately pointed out that if most vampires were as selfish and vicious as I had warned her, then assimilating would be more of a challenge.

We talked so much on the matter it was nearing dawn when I took her to bed, the first time we had sat and conversed and embraced like a normal couple before moving on to sex and feeding. That night brought about an unspoken change to our relationship I was not sure I was comfortable with. Outwardly my human remained her normal self, her conversation light and witty, her behaviour towards me aloof unless I touched her and instigated passion. Only then would she light up like a roomful of candles and instantly yield, wrapping herself around me and claiming me as hers. She had constructed a wall around her heart, maybe with all men but certainly with me, knowing I could give her nothing more than physical pleasure and transient companionship, not love and certainly not a future, and not my real self. If I knew what my real self was anymore, as I was a mess- bloodthirsty monster, loner, lover, dangerous and undomesticated and yet eager to find the human soul that I used to have before that cursed day I was turned.

Despite her outward calm, the bond invited her emotions inside my mind, a boiling sea of mostly painful feelings. Self loathing, frustration, despair and reluctant love; she loved me, I knew it, and she hated herself for her own stupidity in doing so. As I had spent the majority of the last seventy years alone, I was a loss at what to do. With the woman who made me- I never thought of her name or spoke it- I had withdrawn into myself, becoming cold and distant and uncooperative, hating her presence inside my head and her in my life, until neither of us could stand each other anymore and she had released me. But I did not hate Juliet, could not countenance the thought of walking away from her to escape what she felt, though I suffered from the guilt and the annoyance.

For the last two days I had absented myself, not spending the whole evening at her apartment, giving myself a rest from her disturbing presence, and her from mine, only calling her up to enquire is she was well and had not received any further visits from Eric. Her manner was sullen and hurt, and I began to worry I was making the situation worse. And besides, I craved her.

So the moment I rose I went straight to her home. She was not expecting me so the door was locked, and when I received no answer to the buzzer I risked being seen and scaled the building to her balcony, an act I was becoming quite adept at. The repaired air conditioner filled the apartment with cool, metallic air, I closed the balcony doors behind me, finding the room empty and tidy, apart from an old quilt left on the couch and an open box of chocolates on the coffee table. Threaded through the sterile air was the scent of cooking, and a rich, sweet smell that was instantly familiar and enticing. I paused, embarrassed, suddenly knowing why she had been so turbulent this past week; if she was like other females she would not want me around this night.

I closed my eyes, feeling for her through the bond. Her emotions were damped down, she was quiet and calm and very nearby. I heard the splash of water from the bathroom, and perhaps unwisely, I decided to make my presence known. Moving at normal speed I approached the open door, calling out her name softly. The apartment had an old fashioned bathroom with a huge claw footed bathtub in lieu of a shower, a feature Juliet grumbled about often, but I appreciated the sight of her sitting in it, her rounded flesh flushed from the heat, her dark curls piled on top of her head. Cleared of confused emotions and dark moods, the link between us crackled with an electricity that was very simple when she opened her heavy lids and smiled at me. 'Hi, catburglar. What are you here to steal this time? You already got my virtue,' she said teasingly.

I gave her a small, cautious grin. The warm scent of her body and the tang of her blood pulled at my feet, drawing me into the small, stuffy room. 'Uh, I sense you are indisposed,' I said delicately. 'I can leave if you wish.'

Her brows lifted in recognition, then creased in an awkward giggle. 'I have my period, if that's what you mean, silly. But I feel totally fine, I'm done with being a moody bitch and now I am just me. Sit.'

I perched uncomfortably on the edge of the closed toilet seat, eyeing her carefully while I thought of appropriate words. 'You do not have pain? Are not tired and uh, suffering from cramps?' I was curious, since she did not seem to be embarrassed about her condition like most women I had known.

Her green eyes skimmed over my person, her cushioned lips parting in that delightful way they did when she was amused or aroused, and she answered me frankly. 'I'm pretty lucky. I don't get pain, I get weepy and psycho the week before and then when I start, uh, bleeding, I just get damn lazy. I struggle to sleep because I feel all hot and tingly, and my libido goes through the roof, which is frustrating as hell.'

She was always like this, incredibly open about matters relating to the flesh, but still the pink in her cheeks darkened to a rosy red, and she looked away. 'I am also lucky that you are well, and you do not have the urge to throw things at my head and shriek,' I said wryly, and she turned back, her body moving backwards against the sloping wall of the tub, her hands clasping at her knees. She looked to me like a young girl, shy and vulnerable and suddenly needing, the thin veneer of sophistication dropped; it was an invitation impossible to ignore. Without removing my gaze from her upturned face, I toed off my shoes and stood, divesting myself of my clothes at a speed she could observe. Her shy smile deepened to one of seduction, and I felt the desire swelling in her mind, overwhelming her feminine reserve about her state. I would have her.

Like all of my kind, I had a prodigious appetite for sex, as lust went hand in hand with the urge to feed and survive. When I hunted, more often than not I would find release as well, experiencing a variety of bodies, preferences and tastes before I grew sick and weary of playing such games with oblivious victims. Since I had ceased killing for sport to please the witch who gave me this life, I had been consumed with the need to give as well as take from humans, to leave memories of a loving stranger, of an abundance of pleasure, of physical acts that could never be found with a human partner due to my strength and knowledge. I thought I had exhausted all the possibilities sex had to offer, but I had never met a human that excited me as much as this woman, who made me itch with a dual hunger that was never satisfied, who gave herself so freely and without fear, and who lured me into acts of foolishness to possess her.

As I climbed into the tub and knelt before her, her legs lifted to embrace my flanks, and I picked up the floating sponge and bottle of soap and set to work, starting at her pretty feet, slowly working my way upwards. I would take my time with her tonight, I would push her to her very limits of endurance until all the pain she felt over me was forgotten and only satisfaction remained. Juliet's eyes drifted closed and she sighed, her body arching into my touch, round breasts rising over the veil of the water. I leaned forward, sliding the sponge over the soft mound of her belly, up to her chest, circling each breast and watching her nipples harden and darken to the colour of cherries. I found her lips and gave her my cold kiss, lightly running my tongue over the sensitive flesh just inside. She jerked and moaned, her hot tongue slithering into my mouth and her hot hands cupping my face.

I dropped the sponge and slipped my hands under her soft thighs, pushing her further up the wall of the tub, breaking the kiss to let my fangs run out, the scent of her arousal blended with her female blood becoming too much to bear; soon I would taste both. I buried my face in her breasts, her belly, nipping and mouthing and tracing her supple curves, kneading her buttocks under the water. She started to make little mewling sounds, sweetly helpless, the water surging at every twitch of her body as I worked my way downwards. Her hands were now gripping the sides of the tub, bracing herself up, so I removed one hand from underneath her and picked up the soap, deftly tipping a tiny amount onto my fingertips while my tongue followed the strip of hair down to her nub. As I lapped at it gently she raised herself out of the water with a cry, a cry that turned swiftly into gasps of protest when I delved deep into the recesses of her body, sampling her blood, richer and thicker than the blood I took from the source. I rumbled in my throat in pure pleasure.

'No, Bill, you can't do...oh God!' She was shocked, discomforted, but moaned nonetheless, spreading her thighs to accommodate the rough caress of my lips and tongue, and my slippery fingers, teasing at her taut back passage before easing inside in the way she had grown to relish. She began to slide back down into the bath as she became increasingly limp, so I paused to hook her calves over my shoulders, opening her slick folds further to me. I repeatedly splayed my fingers to stretch her smooth muscles, my tongue circling her clitoris but not touching, blowing my chill breath onto her flesh before drawing as much as I could into my mouth, gently tugging at her lower lips. She sobbed, ragged, breathless sounds overlain with the thump of her femoral artery next to my ear, calling me to pierce her skin and suck, selfishly gorge myself on her hot nectar, but I ignored the urge.

The bathwater embraced me like a womb, bringing heat to my dead limbs, my cock so hard it lay almost flat against my stomach. The other urge nagged at me now; to rise up and thrust my full length inside her, but that too could wait. Her bottom lifted to take my fingers inside her shamelessly, her ragged cries echoing in the confined space. Fresh blood dripped onto my tongue as I swapped between teasing her nub and probing within her, and the erotic mix of tastes, scents and the sound of her enjoyment swirled like a red, dizzy fog in my senses. When her muscles closed tight around my hand and she shrieked, I plunged my tongue as high up inside her as I could without sinking my fangs into her rippling flesh. She came, and I drunk it in, swallowing her welling juices. The bond sparked and fizzed with her climax, pleasuring me though I was yet to be touched.

When her spasms had subsided I released her, guiding her down into the water, kissing her crimson face and licking the beads of sweat from her brow. Her eyes glittered like emeralds when they opened; beautiful and unique, adoring and eager. 'Let me finish washing you, and then you will please me,' I whispered, taking her hand and placing it on my hardness. She shuddered, her little teeth sinking into her lower lip. With more soap I cleaned her thoroughly between her thighs, making her flinch as her overly sensitive flesh reacted, and then I lifted her from the tub, wrapping her in a towel. Dismissing my own dripping state I carried her out of the bathroom and to the neatly made bed, drawing back the coverlet and sitting down with my woman across my knees. I patted her dry while she stroked me, her smooth hands and plump lips anointing my chest, my neck, her tongue darting out to lick drops of water off my skin.

'Mmm, you're all warm,' she said dreamily, lifting her hips so I could rid her of the towel when I was done. She spun around to face me, her hand closing around my hardness, no reserve lurking in the lovely eyes that looked down at me. Her defenses were gone, and she touched me like a confident woman who knew her lover was entirely hers. I felt her contentment and excitement in the bond, and the tension, she sensed I had something different in mind for tonight, perhaps she could read my feelings also.

I scraped my fangs over the curve of her swanlike neck. 'Soon you will make me even warmer,' I murmured. 'Do you trust me, sweetheart?'

There was a tinge of sadness in her response, her eyes closing briefly. 'With my body, yes.' I ignored the flash of pain she broadcasted, hiding my face in her bosom. I lifted her like a sleepy child, depositing her on her knees on the cotton sheets. Another night we would talk of serious matters, of what she wanted from me and what I was able to give, but for now I was hungry and aching for release, wanting her to forget and submit to me more than she had done so before. I pressed her face into the mattress, appreciating the way she raised her backside for me. Most humans who were

drawn to vampires as lovers were naturally submissive and aroused by pain as well as pleasure, and she was that type. She revelled in the sting of my bite, begging for it, and the more forceful my behaviour between the sheets, the better it was for her. I was not concerned that she would resist me and suffer. Her muffled whines when I spread her wetness onto my fingertips and around the small entrance between her cheeks were a blend of fear and lust, becoming more frantic when I dipped the head of my cock in her folds for lubrication. I spat on my hand, gliding it over my length, making sure it would not hurt her more than she would like.

I expected her to make more token cries of protest, but she did not, only pushing her knees further apart as I positioned myself to enter. I heard her heart race, the hitch of her breath, the gritty sound of her teeth locking together. She was exquisitely tight around me, so taut and hot and darkly sweet. I halted when I was halfway engulfed, giving her time to adjust, her back was shaking as if a horde of ants were marching across her skin. 'No, no...more, give me all of you,' she hissed. I growled low in reaction to her invitation, slipping me hand over her hip and down her belly, finding her sex swollen and soaked with her nectar, and pressed her backwards onto my cock, making her take it all. An agonised wail that would have worried me if I could not feel her pleasure inside and out; I groaned and jerked within her vicelike grip, needing desperately to move.

It was everything I had hoped for in the blackest part of my appetites, exciting whimpers of pain dying to throaty moans, her body stretching to accommodate my girth, the relentless downward plunge of my hips met with an welcoming arch. I did not stop toying with her nub, now wanting her to feel only pleasure in what I was doing to her. There was no sense of urgency, I wanted to come, I wanted to feed, but I could do this forever, the feel of her wrapped so closely around me, the beauty of her pliant body flowing up into my hands. She came as quick as thought, with no warning before she lifted her rumpled head from the sheets and screamed to the heavens, her flesh pulsing under my palm, my cock drawn deeper into her secret depths.

I was shaken from the trancelike state I was in by her release, I could almost hear the snap of the restraint breaking somewhere in my brain. I flicked the clip from her hair and wrapped the silky strands around my fist, yanking her up so I could reach the sweet spot on her creamy throat, her body settled flush against my chest as I thrust into her faster, harder, crueler. My hands occupied with holding her as I dived towards that shining moment of climax, her own hand slipped between her thighs, and she touched herself, circling her nub and plunging her fingers into her body, all the while groaning and crying as if in the midst of terrible torment. When I bit into her, her blood was so hot and sharp from the tension in her body I cried out, the red liquid spilling down her chest and dropping on the sheets; she tasted so sublime I wanted to keep drinking, to drain her to the point of death. I fought with myself even as I released inside her, her muscles gripping me, massaging my length as she exploded once again.

I toppled forward in a surge of lightheadedness, continuing to move within her as I sucked frantically at the wound in her throat. She grew limp under me, and I made myself stop before it was too late, dragging myself away and heaving in air in a pointless reflex. When she didn't move I felt real fear, and I withdrew from her as gently as possible, turning her over to face me. Tears were streaming from beneath her closed lids, but her lips were curved in a smile. 'Juliet, are you well? Talk to me,' I said urgently, grasping her shoulders and shaking her. She was so pale, I had never seen her honeyed skin blanch like this.

Without thinking I lifted my wrist to my mouth and bit, and the crunching sound roused her. Her eyes and lips opened, and she shook her head weakly. 'No, don't give me blood,' she said groggily, her brow creasing in pain. 'I don't want to feel any more of what I've been feeling lately. Just let me rest.' The holes in her throat were ragged, her body was a limp tangle of limbs, bathed in sweat and exhaustion. My satisfaction tasted sour in my tongue as more hideous guilt consumed me. I rubbed my fingers in the closing wound on my wrist and silently reached out to heal the marks of my selfish lust, using my blood to close them, and she must have seen something in my face that worried her. 'Don't feel bad, Bill, I wanted all of this, and I am fine,' she said softly. 'I trust you, remember?'

There was so much sadness beneath the surface of her simple words, but I could not deal with it. So I took them at face value, smiling back at her and laying down, drawing her ravaged body into my embrace.

**


	6. Chapter 6

_Thanks for the reviews, regular readers, I'm enjoying them. This chapter is quite long for a change. Read on..._

_**_

**Part Six**

For a hundred and forty years I had lived my life, if you could call it that, firmly in the shadows, hiding and playing pretend, taking on various names and guises, hypnotising humans into thinking I was never there, they never saw me, they never felt my deadly mouth on their skin. When I went out in public, I mimed eating food and drinking liquor without letting a morsel or a sip past my lips. By trickery and artifice, I was a human, William or Guilliame or Albert, rather pale and drawn looking, raising suspicions in some by my appearance and elusive manner, but never known for my true nature. So the first time I went out in public after the Revelation, I felt deeply uncomfortable, like an exotic animal in a zoo, or a bug under a microscope.

The restaurant was the first establishment in New Orleans to advertise itself as vampire friendly, and had indeed been a haunt for my kind for some years beforehand. It was small, discreet, and served only desserts, so was not permeated with the rank odours of meat and grease, but the pleasant scents of chocolate, fruit and rich, baked concoctions. Vampires did and still do take their human companions there, the sweet fare enhancing the taste of their blood and strengthening their constitutions with excesses of sugar and protein, giving an entirely selfish aspect to what was perceived as a romantic date. Juliet had been delighted when I had invited her out on her return from visiting her parents outside Chicago, my excuse being that I wanted to see her in a pretty gown for a change and to show her off; I had not told her the selfish reasons.

I had not fed from her in over a week as I feared I had taken too much the night I had found her in the bathtub, telling her to regain her strength, eat plenty of food and take her vitamins in the meantime. She had asked me not to feed from anyone else in a small, sad voice and I had promised, mostly respecting her wishes apart from one occasion when she was away and I had been prowling the city alone one night, weary of my diet of Tru Blood. I was drinking a bottle of the vile stuff now while she picked at the two desserts I had insisted she order, enjoying the way she closed her eyes and groaned in bliss when she placed a forkful of gateau or flan in her mouth. I could probably not resist feeding from her tonight, and she was looking much better; her skin glowing from being out in the sun constantly while at her family home. She was very beautiful in a sleeveless white dress sprinkled with green and yellow flowers, the skirt billowing with layers of tulle petticoats which I found achingly sexy.

The few other bold vampires in the restaurant unfortunately thought so too; I had thrown a few icy glares around the elegant room when I caught them looking at her avariciously. The place was crowded with curious humans, some of which were looking at Juliet with naked jealousy for being so fortunate in having a vampire for a lover. A mere two weeks and it was already becoming obvious that hunting for a meal would no longer be required, there were foolish men and women lining up to be bitten and ravaged. I wish I could warn them all that not all vampires made for chivalrous, considerate lovers, even I struggled with it. Here I was, with a beautiful, intelligent woman that loved me and I did not know what to do with her except pleasure her and take blood from her and listen to her talk about a life I could never really be a part of. How could I show her my real self when I did not know what that was? How could I tell her even a tiny amount of what I had seen and and done since I was turned? I was a murderer, a thief, a destroyer of lives, and the person I had been before, it hurt too much to think of him and all he had left behind.

I took a large sip of my warmed bottle to calm my internal brooding, licking my teeth so I could smile at Juliet when she looked up from her food to complain cheekily. 'Are you trying to give me an even fatter ass? I can't eat all this, Bill.' She put her fork down and lifted her glass of sweet wine to her lips. I picked up on her light, playful mood, deciding it was vastly preferable to mine.

'A fine, fat ass on a woman is a thing of beauty, especially yours,' I said solemnly, and she burst into laughter, drawing the intent gaze of a dark skinned vampire I recognised from the palace. I shot him another 'she is mine' look, and he smirked and turned back to his less attractive companion. 'Eat up so I can take you somewhere more private,' I said significantly, and was rewarded by a pretty blush and a surge of desire through the bond. It had been a long time by our standards, and she was also not oblivious to the impolite glances coming our way. I waited until she had chewed another mouthful before continuing. 'How does your family?'

She grimaced. 'Dysfunctional as always...my Dad hiding from me in the garden shed, my Mom bleating at me how I'm 28 and getting old, how I should find a nice husband and settle down and give up this career nonsense.' Her tone was acid. 'I swear she's older than you. I told her I was seeing someone just to shut her up...' She gave me a brittle smile. 'She was all ears, but I didn't give her any details. God, my parents are so awful...its no wonder I was never interested in marriage and kids.' A deep sigh and another mouthful of cake. 'Mmm, sooo good...I spent most of the trip sunbathing and drinking beer with my loser brother.'

From what I knew of modern day families, her grumblings sounded rather normal, but I could sense that the subject was painful for her, and I had a moment of insight as to why she was such an independent, reckless soul. 'In my day, we respected and obeyed our parents even if they were fools,' I said, surprising myself as a memory of my own mother and father floated to the surface of my consciousness. It had been a long time since I had thought of them.

Juliet looked startled, then her green eyes studied my face carefully. 'Your day...' she said slowly. 'You told me you were a soldier, what did you do before?' I had given her an opening and I sensed her excitement, the questions brimming in her mouth, ready to spill out if I would let them.

I closed my eyes in a wince. 'I was a simple farmer on my father's land. I had a family of my own before I went to war...before I was-' My mouth shut like a steel trap. Sadness, pity, frustration flowed through the bond as I stayed silent, hoping what she was feeling towards me would just go away.

Her small, soft hand reached across the table and took mine. 'I should have guessed,' she said gently, seizing on the safest part of my response by turning my hand palm upwards and stroking it. 'Your hands are so elegant, but rough, like you did hard manual work um, before.' I opened my eyes, keeping my face blank and smooth. 'You're uncomfortable, we can go. I can't eat another bite anyway.' She looked stiff, unsure of the way my mood would shift after such an obvious awkward moment.

I squeezed her fingers firmly and nodded, settling on seduction. 'I think I have fattened you up sufficiently, and all these rude stares are making me very selfish. I wish to whisk you away and have you all to myself.' Her posture relaxed as I slouched back in my chair and plucked my wallet from an inside pocket, and she hurriedly gulped the rest of her wine as I pulled out several bills to leave on the table and rose to help her to her feet. She molded herself into my side when we left the restaurant, her skirts swinging out to reveal her tanned legs and delicate green heels. I kissed the top of her dark head, stealing a glimpse down the hollow of her cleavage. The street was crowded with drunken college students and gawking tourists, but I only had eyes for her, steering us a path through the throng as I guided us back to the car, which she had declared 'awesome' when I arrived to pick her up that night.

The blessedly comfortable silence we shared was broken by her sudden mischievous laugh as we passed a shop doorway. 'Does this look familiar?' She said, stopping and turning to me.

I smiled and drew her into my arms, walking her backwards into the dark doorway. 'Why yes it does,' I said dryly, my gaze hunting for the right place to lay my lips and settling on her throat. She purred and tilted her head back, her hands roaming restlessly over the arms boxing her in. The atmosphere thickened and warmed around us, bringing us to a place that was familiar and exciting. My fangs ran out slightly. 'I thought you too beautiful and too brave to resist that night,' I whispered in her ear.

'Mmm...if I hadn't invited you home with me, what would you have done?' She said daringly, pressing herself closer, her breasts a soft weight against my chest. 'Wouls you have bitten me in the doorway?'

I took her chin between my fingertips and made her look into my eyes. 'Actually no, because I wanted more than just to feed from you,' I told her. 'I would have glamoured you into obeying me. And you would have come with me willingly to somewhere more private. A hotel, or my house.'

'I've never seen your house,' she gasped, her lids drooping heavily as lust swamped her senses. Her scent and heat were just as stirring to me as they were in that first encounter.

'There is nothing to see there, it's just a resting place...but listen, I have not told you all,' I drawled, enjoying being honest with her for once. 'When I had you under my control and away from potential observers, I would have stripped you and licked you all over. And then I would have bitten you-' My hand crept under her skirts to ghost over her inner thigh. 'Just here,' I hissed. She moaned softly and opened her legs, the stiff petticoats rustling. 'And then I would have taken you in every orifice, making you come again and again until you swooned. And then I would have bitten you once more, and be done with you.'

She slumped against me, hiding her face in the curve my neck, her hot lips sucking at a mouthful of my chill flesh. 'Oh my...I wouldn't remember anything afterwards? That seems a shame,' she breathed, her hand squirming down between our bodies to cup my hardness.

I had to take her home and have her, my thirst and my lust for her had broken upon me like a storm. Shaking with effort I pulled away, retracting my fangs and offering her my hand. 'Oh, I would have let you remember some of it,' I said slyly. 'Come, I will take you to my home, since you want to see it.' A small consolation for my usual reserve, but it was enough to make her smile as if I had given her a precious jewel.

*

Juliet spun slowly as she inspected the living room of my rented house, located in a quiet corner of an upscale New Orleans suburb. I had taken a seat on the couch, letting her satisfy her curiosity unescorted. She had poked around the empty kitchen, the closed up bedrooms where I had not bothered to even remove the dustsheets, the master bathroom with the lavish spa bath which I liked very much to lie in and read. She she had not found my sleeping place and I would not show it to her, it being a coffin in a bricked up corner of the storm cellar. The living room was a riot of pastels and modern, tasteless furniture, my only touches being a large plasma television and DVD player, open boxes of treasured books I had collected in my solo wanderings, and my game console. She wrinkled her nose disdainfully and gestured to the hideous curtains. 'This is so not you, Bill,' she ventured, smiling at me quizzically. 'Why don't you try and make this place your own?'

'I have never stayed in one place for very long,' I confessed with a very human shrug, my body language as always adapting when I was around her. 'The décor is not to my taste, but I do not notice it often, being a man.'

She snorted, her lovely eyes drifting over me. She evidently liked what she saw as I felt a lurch of fresh desire through the bond, and her lips parted. 'Well, you don't have to hide from the world anymore. Perhaps you should think about finding a nicer place and building a life for yourself.' She turned away again, spotting my game console on a side table, and lifted her hand to her mouth to smother a giggle, obviously finding the thought of a 170 year old vampire playing Xbox amusing.

I thought about what she said, wondering if I could retire from working for the Queen, which required me to move around the country often, and settle in my own home. Make friends, be part of a community...it still seemed like a ridiculous dream to me. 'You may be right,' I said absently, filing my thoughts away for later. 'It would be nice to stay still. You are very wise, as well as most beautiful.'

She stopped fidgeting and brought her warm gaze back to me, her plump lips emitting a longing sigh, her feet drawing her closer to the couch. 'Do you realise the way you sit is incredibly sexy? You sit like a lord and master,' she murmured, and I chuckled at the odd yet flattering observation, lifting a finger to beckon her closer. But then her quick, bright mind brought more words to her lips, her pink face growing serious. 'Oh, I forgot...I read an article the other day I wanted to ask you about,' she said, fiddling with the hem of her skirts.

'Go on,' I said warily, suspecting it was about one of the sensationalist, so-called exposes being spread around by the newly formed American Vampire League, creating myth and confusion about the origins of our kind for a guileless public.

'It said vampirism was a virus that made people seem dead, and allergic to sunlight,' she said slowly. 'But it's bullshit, right?' She stepped closer with a wry smile, her hand reaching out to me. She placed it over my chest, feeling no heartbeat, then over my mouth, feeling no breath. Then she lifted my own hand and brought it to her breast and her lips, an elegant, silent pantomime which I found strangely touching. Her breath was hot on my fingertips as she spoke. 'I know you're really and truly dead.'

'Yes I am,' I said honestly, my eyes locking with hers; blue and green, dead and living. 'Does it bother you, sweetheart?' I took her hand and kissed it, she shook her head, a tendril of hair swaying around her face.

'I'm pretty good at not thinking about things I don't want to think about, and to me you are just you, Bill,' she said, saying my name like a caress. I felt it strongly then, all the hopeless, painful love that she had for my unworthy self, I had to distract her before it overwhelmed me.

'And you are mine,' I replied, my voice suddenly thick in my throat. 'And I am glad of it. But enough talking for now, darling. I have been in need of you from the minute I saw you in that dress tonight.' My lips dragged across her hand, and I took her fingertips in my mouth, nipping at them briefly, enough to make her shiver. 'Stand back and let me look at you.'

If she was annoyed at me for changing the subject, I could not sense it. I settled into the back of the leather couch, my hands lying idle, and let my gaze rake her sweetly curved form, her flowered skirts hiding her knees, her tight bodice straining to hold her breasts confined, the tiny span of her waist. Feminine, subtle, the swathes of fabric enhancing her allure and promising delicious secrets underneath. I imagined myself hiding under those skirts, finding the pulsing spot on her soft inner thigh and sinking my fangs into its sweetness. And then another image of her bent over, her dress in disarray as I thrust into her from behind. The tense knot in my groin tightened, and I swallowed. 'Unfasten your bodice.'

Blushing slightly, Juliet lifted a hand to the zipper at her back, drawing it down and then shrugging her shoulder straps down her bare arms, enough to make her breasts peek out from above the neckline of her dress. She touched them for me, her mouth falling open and eyes darkening as she pinched her nipples to fullness, her attuned sensuality as always picking up on my intentions and responding eagerly. My cock rose to instant hardness. 'Now lift your skirt,' I said huskily, my gaze following the path of her fingers as she obeyed, inching up the hemline, revealing her tanned thighs and a tiny pair of transparent panties, framed by the fall of her skirts. My fangs ran out with a click, though I could have restrained myself for longer, for I knew they excited her beyond measure. 'Come to me.'

She stepped out of her heels as she moved forwards, bringing her loins level with my face. I leaned forward, burying my face in the fork of her legs and inhaling the maddening scent of her arousal, my hands cupping her backside. She was already trembling, making little sounds in her throat. Like a gentleman I should lay her down on the couch, but something cruel in me wanted to make her stand before me until her knees gave out. I laid a rough kiss over the mound of her sex then used my teeth to rip her panties from her body, making her screech in a mix of outrage and amusement. I smirked at the sound, my spirits settling into that comforting, mindless haze of lust that brought me and her so many hours of joy.

The ruined undergarment fell to the floor and I lifted one thigh onto my shoulder, opening her and balancing her just so. It was mere seconds before she was moaning, her juices flowing freely onto my probing tongue and fingers, her hands burrowing under the veil of her skirts to clutch at my hair. She keened my name over and over as I used three fingers in a beckoning motion inside her, hitting the special spot on her upper wall, and her nub throbbed steadily under the dance of my tongue. Her legs shook uncontrollably, but she managed to stay upright with the help of my grasp, even as she started to climax. 'Do it...bite me, oh God! Going to come...oh please Bill.' Her blood was extra sweet and scorching hot as I withdrew my fangs and fastened my lips around the gushing wounds, being careful not to spill a drop, and the relief of feeding after so many days without her was like a wave of white light moving through my body, banishing the ache of hunger like no bottled substitute could.

Juliet swayed dangerously on her feet, her sex contracting around my hand violently. I held her still until I had taken my fill, licking the wound closed and emerging from under her skirts. I swept her up into my arms, walking towards the master bedroom with her limp form cradled against my chest, feeling my way with my inner senses as her lips were dropping distracting kisses all over my face. I set her down on the edge of the bed, whipping the dust sheet out from under her quickly and then standing before her. I lifted her drooping head and she smiled at me darkly, her green eyes expectant. I felt her desire to give herself over to my hands, the complete trust. 'Undress me,' I said abruptly, knowing I would dominate her again tonight, consume her until she was utterly spent, satisfying her needs while simultaneously keeping her at arms length.

Her fingers crept down the front of my shirt, flicking open each button, her lips planting kisses on my belly, her breath making my skin prickle. My belt clinked open, I searched for the pins in her hair, loosening the dark river of curls as she engulfed me with her mouth, my hands twisting in the silky strands to guide her movements, steady and deep. Such skill and care she gave me, her throat yielding, her wet mouth squeezing around my length, her fingertips stroking and kneading my backside and below. I became deaf and blind to all but her; her dishevelled beauty, the vibration of her moans and gasps. When she let me slide free from her swollen lips and pushed her heavenly breasts up to encase my length I growled, a ripping, inhuman sound that made her eyes widen before she flicked her tongue over the tip of my cock, tickling it exquisitely. It was enough. In a flurry of movement I had her on her feet and facing towards the bed, hoisting her skirts around her waist. I bent her torso forwards, arching her body at the perfect height to enter her in one stroke. She wailed, throwing her bottom backwards to take me to the hilt.

So distracted was I by the sight of her sex taking me in, the pleasure of her hot, slippery walls locking me deep inside her heart, I did not immediately notice the presence in the house, ignoring the warning prickles between my shoulder blades. I was doubled over her, pushing her head into the coverlet as I withdrew to plunge into her again, listening to her ecstatic cries, when I looked up through my hair to note a figure in the open doorway. A tall figure, completely at ease with what he was witnessing, no shame in interrupting a very private moment, his fangs out in appreciation. If Juliet saw him she would be mortified, being human and not accustomed to the casual attitude vampires had towards the act of sex. It may be normal for Eric, and in the past myself, to watch others fucking and feeding and hope to join in, but it would not be for her. And there was no chance in hell he would be invited to participate.

Not stopping my movements inside her I hissed a warning, glaring defiantly, my teeth bared, my whole body bristling with aggression even as I made love to my woman. My anger made my thrusts sharp and cruel, so much so she writhed and whined in pain, exciting me and exciting Eric. I had never felt more like an animal than at this moment; I hated myself and I hated him. Through the charged, hostile atmosphere in the room I threw my silent message, g_et out_, and at last, he backed off with a smirk, closing the door behind him noiselessly. I wondered to myself what he wanted, relieved that Juliet was too lost in pleasure to notice, but then I dismissed Eric from my mind and made her my focus, intending to take my time before joining him to find out.

*

I left my human alone on the bed in a dazed stupor, her eyes glassy and her body suffused with the glow of a powerful orgasm, her left breast marked by my bite. At the point of her release as I moved her violently above me, holding her imprisoned on my lap, I had bitten into her soft flesh, getting a steady trickle of blood to bring me over the edge into oblivion with her. Only after I had laid her down and kissed her in gratitude had I brought my mind back to my unwelcome visitor. The bathroom door I left open with the water running to stifle the noise of conversation from the living room, and I had kissed her again and told her to join me in the tub before I drew my clothes on and left her reluctantly. When I entered the other room I found Eric slouched in an easy chair, his long, denim clad legs plonked discourteously on the coffee table, where a pair of green shoes, a purse and a ripped pair of panties were lined up neatly, all obviously inspected. I clenched my fists.

The handsome, blonde giant looked highly amused. 'This boring little errand turned out to be quite interesting,' he remarked as I sat down on the couch. 'You look positively healthy, Bill. I thought she was a pretty breather but I see she has many other advantages.' He poked his large, booted foot in the direction of Juliet's open purse. 'Juliet Polloni...registered architect. Smart as well as delicious...again, I really don't know how you manage to attract such marvelous women.' His tone was mocking as usual, if he was really envious it was well hidden.

I wondered for a second if he'd kept her business card for nefarious reasons, but then my simmering anger erupted. 'I manage because I treat humans with some respect, unlike you,' I hissed, keeping my voice low as possible. 'I thank you not to go through my lady's purse. And I thank you not to come in my house uninvited. What the devil do you want?' Whatever he was here for, I was sure I was not going to like it.

'I would apologise, but it's not my style, and besides, I very much enjoyed the show,' he grinned, not at all riled by my words. 'I'm here because the Queen sent me to ask you to a ball this Friday, you and your human. I mentioned you had bonded with one and she was rather upset you hadn't told her yourself. You know the Queen favours you, Bill. Another conquest,' he said, looking like the cat who ate the canary. 'You should call at the palace more often, our gracious Queen needs to speak to you urgently on some business matter. I'm sure Ms. Polloni would enjoy meeting Sophie-Anne.'

Juliet would not enjoy meeting Sophie-Anne. She would not enjoy at all going to a function at the palace. I shuddered, imagining the things she would witness there, I suspected things had not become more civil since the Revelation. If the palace gave me disquiet it would terrify my woman. 'I do not wish to involve Juliet in that side of my life, and you know it,' I growled. 'She knows little of vampires save what I have told her in brief, and she does not want to know.'

The Viking rolled his eyes in exasperation. 'What is the point in trying to shield her and create a cuddly image of yourself?' He said cuttingly. 'I have seen this all before. She is just a diversion. She will make a fool of herself falling in love with the man she thinks you are, and eventually she will grow tired of being just sex and food. And you will grow tired of her misery and sulks. She will end up tossed to one side, picked up to be the whore of another.' His striking face was serious for a change, his bright blue eyes holding a hint of empathy. 'It's better to be honest. Be the vampire you are...you are such tiresome company Compton, always fighting with yourself.'

I knew what he said was right, cruel though it was, but still I denied it. 'I am not you,' I growled. 'And I am not them. I do not want to drag Juliet into that pretty den of lions.'

He laughed loudly, his blonde hair swirling as he shook his head. 'Oh, I don't think we're as bad as lions. Lions don't caress and pleasure their meals, I've always said.' His mouth quirked. 'Nor take them home to their tasteless rented den and give them head on the couch.' He waved his big hands dismissively at the living room, then turned at the sound of the bedroom door opening. 'Ah, here she comes!' He said delightedly, and I groaned inwardly as Juliet tiptoed out, her dress on but her hair still wild and loose around her shoulders.

'Bill? I heard voices,' she called before her eyes fell on Eric. She halted in the centre of the floor. 'Oh, it's you,' she said flatly, her face closing up in dislike.

He winked at her flirtatiously. 'You don't like me much, do you darling?' He observed as she wrinkled her nose as if a bad smell was in the room. I stood and held out my hand to her in direction, and she forced herself to move, sitting down at my side reluctantly.

'You know what they say about first impressions,' she shot back, curling up into a ball at my side, seeking protection. Her eyes drifted from staring at the intruder rudely to the coffee table, and I heard her mutter 'shit!' under her breath as she spotted her discarded underwear.

Eric heard her and snickered. 'But I like you, my lovely,' he said, with a distinctive leer, and despite herself Juliet giggled and flushed.

'You'd like to have me for dinner,' she said sarcastically, snuggling closer into my body, her green eyes snapping with annoyance. 'Lucky for me, you can't.'

She was in a bold mood this night. Both of them were quick of wit and tongue, and I suspected they could do this until dawn, trade insults and jests, and I felt a flicker of irrational jealousy. I studied her as Eric was studying her, a glow of post-coital languor on her pretty face, her eyes liquid and warm when they looked up at me, her lids heavy, the mark of my fangs visible about the neckline of her dress. Her scent tickled the nose enticingly, sex and sin and blood. I had a sudden flash of images, wholly unwelcome, of her ripe body caught between his and mine, gleaming with sweat, straining with the effort of taking us both inside her, I shuddered in shame and lust. I had to get her out of here before something happened, something we would both regret bitterly. 'Eric was just leaving, sweetheart,' I murmured stiffly. 'Why don't you go and bathe. I will join you in a moment. The tub is quite wonderful, better than yours.'

She was only too happy to obey, too wise to miss the undercurrents of sexual tension flying around the room, her vulnerable position between two vampires, only one she trusted and him only barely. But as she hopped to her feet and snatched up her possessions Eric spoke. 'Aren't you going to tell her she's invited to a ball? Women like prior warning about a black tie event, so I gather.'

She glanced at my sullen face. 'A vampire ball? Um, no thank you,' she said coolly. 'Sounds classy, but I like to live in ignorance. You two are scary enough for me.'

'Sorry darling, you have to go. No one says no to Sophie Anne, and she is curious to meet Bill's little human friend,' Eric said, radiating mischief.

Juliet was both intrigued and wary, her gaze bouncing between me and Eric in confusion. 'Sophie Anne Le Clerc? I know of her, she owns a lot of property around town. I didn't know she was a vampire,' she muttered, half to herself. 'And excuse me, but I don't _have_ to do anything,' she told Eric stubbornly. 'I don't want to get involved in your weird world, and Bill doesn't want me to either.' She gave me an imploring look, her posture tense, her shoes and purse clutched defensively against her chest. 'Honey, tell me I don't have to go.'

I was powerless, and her disappointment when I spoke cut my pride to the core. I felt it through the link between us, her fear and her anger and her panic. 'I'm sorry, sweetheart, she is my Queen and I have to obey her,' I said quietly, my eyes not meeting hers. 'I would have preferred to keep you a secret, but I cannot, it seems.' I lifted my head and glared daggers at Eric, making it perfectly clear it was his fault she had drawn the attention of others. He merely shrugged again, a smug smile decorating his face as she swore under her breath and stormed out of the room.

'Don't look so damn gloomy,' he said, slapping my shoulder before gliding to his feet. 'She'll have both of us to protect her from trouble. I'm sure it will be quite boring and civilised.'

I highly doubted it.

**


	7. Chapter 7

**Part Seven**

As I drove to my humans apartment the evening of the ball at the Queen's palace, memories of the dream I had before waking were troubling me, adding to the disquiet I already possessed over the night ahead. My plans to keep Juliet safely bound to my side while still conferring with Sophie Anne kept being interrupted by flashes of the dream, so real and potent I could smell the thick country air that had wrapped around me, the perfume of the girl, not a woman, who had appeared at the upstairs window as I stood outside her home, lurking in the dark.

It was some place not far from New Orleans, a place that seemed remarkably familiar, and the girl had not been Juliet. I had not seen her face, only the suggestion of golden hair, of childish nightclothes, of light steps across the dew wet grass, the whir of night insects and frogs suddenly falling silent as she came towards me. An overwhelming thirst for the mystery girl's sweet and intoxicating blood warred with amused fascination, and a shy, boyish longing for her to trust me, to touch me and love me, banish my coldness and aloneness with her innocent warmth. I had trembled like a green youth under my predator's mask, and if it was not for my bloodlust I would have thought my dream self was the younger, human version of me, out courting for my wife.

I knew as I came awake suddenly, jerking upright so I near banged my head on the coffin lid, that I had never felt that weakness, such tender desperation for a woman before. Not for my beloved wife, so long dead, not for my Maker, and not for the dark, passionate woman who gave her body to me every night. Who was that golden haired girl, and why was it not Juliet? Would my immortal life be a pathetic story of moving from one human to another until I found one that I could love? I had suffered through enough dreams in the last a hundred and forty years to know that most of them had some meaning, some inner truth amidst the madness and confusion.

No matter, I should have been thinking of more important things, like my real woman, who was waiting for me to escort her into the lion's den. Since that evening at my house, she had too often looked at me with disappointed eyes. She was waiting for me to open up, she was questioning why I could not keep her safe. For the first time she was seeing clearly and coldly our relationship and the dead end it definitely was.

I endured her sadness and discontent and did not speak of it. I did not sit her down and let her talk about what she wanted, which was more, like all women. But still I could not see it; a semi-normal existence with her by my side, those tender, helpless emotions I had experienced in tonight's dream and still haunted my from my human life like ethereal ghosts. The vulnerability, the honesty, making myself weak for the love of a human. It was not the behaviour of a killer and a parasite, a survivor. I was better off alone like before, without any emotional complications, but there was something in Juliet that kept me there, that made me freeze in panic at the thought of losing her. Her ability to make me forget who I was and what I was, was more precious than mere desire and possessiveness. If only I could let myself relax my guard with her. If I could get her through the ball without incident I swore to myself that I would try.

I drove without even noting my surroundings and other traffic, and I started awake when I found myself parked outside the apartment building, breaking free from my heavy thoughts. Shaking my head at my absentmindedness, I locked the car and mounted the stairs, the aimless sounds of humanity floating out from behind closed doors as I climbed. A television blaring, a child being scolded, a teenager babbling inanities on a cellphone, the sound of steak frying on a grill, the smell tickling my nose unpleasantly. As I reached the top floor I heard Juliet, the enticing swish of fabric and muffled curses as she attended to her toilette. I knocked and entered, seeing her poised in front of her dresser mirror, hastily putting down an empty glass of wine. I did not blame her for fortifying her nerves, and going by the flush on her cheeks the drink certainly wasn't her first.

'Oh wow, Bill, look at you!' She exclaimed happily when she saw me in my rented tuxedo. She spun around in her stockinged feet, her voluminous lilac skirts swinging out. 'I'm glad I'm not overdressed.'

She was exquisite in an old fashioned gown that had the look of an upturned magnolia blossom, girlish and pretty, the sash of purple emphasising the tiny span of her waist, I felt a flood of warmth in my chest, and I smiled at her approvingly. Her dark curls were an unruly mess around her subtly painted face, she had been struggling with her hair, hence her swearing. When she thought I was not around to hear, her language was less than ladylike.

She came to me, her hands reaching for the front of my starched shirt, I leaned forward and kissed her glossy lips, wrapping my arms around her. 'Hello sweetheart. You are a vision of loveliness.' The wine was tart and sweet on her tongue as she deepened the kiss, a stirring moan sounding against my chest.

She wrinkled her nose when she looked up at me, dismissing the compliment. 'I can't get my hair right, and I think I look too much like a flower fairy. But I loved this dress in the costume store, and I thought slutty and obvious wasn't the right look for tonight.'

I took her hands and pushed her backwards so I could take all of her in. Her girlish gown could not hide her vibrancy and sensuality, it only added to her appeal, the rich silk moulding her full breasts and spreading out in petal-like skirts, and her necklace of colourful glass flowers drawing attention to the smooth, creamy column of her neck. I felt the burn of hunger in my throat, and her green eyes widened when she saw it reflected on my face. 'Um, maybe I should have gone for tight and black to blend in,' she muttered, a crease of worry appearing between her brows.

I moved to reassure her. 'Your beauty will only serve to make me the proudest man in the palace,' I said smoothly. 'You have nothing to fear from tonight, my darling. I will protect you.'

She squeezed my fingers in hers and pulled away, still frowning, and turned back to the mirror, I changed the subject before a dark cloud could descend upon her. I wanted her relaxed; her agitation would only draw more attention to ourselves and make the experience more unpleasant. I came up behind her, taking the hairpins and brush from her hands. 'I have some knowledge of dressing ladies hair,' I offered. 'Let me help you.'

Juliet sighed as my deft fingers removed the pins she had placed and I began to brush out her thick curls, the iron in her spine softening, bringing her warm body to rest against mine. I worked until her hair gleamed, knowing it soothed her, and sure enough I saw a lazy smile blossom in the mirror. Her head tilted forward to give me access, exposing the pale nape of her neck as I twisted the strands in my fist to begin pinning it in place. I had a flash of mixed memories, the dark gold hair of my wife, so long it reached to her hips in a beautiful, rippling cloak, and the lighter, white-gold hair of the dream girl, frosted by the moonlight in the garden. I shook them both away and focused on my task, pinning each curl up in a crown above my dark lady's forehead, my hands eerily white against her tanned skin when I diverted to stroke her face, the elegant curve of her neck.

She purred and rubbed against me slightly, her eyelids drooping. When my fingers slid down to caress the tops of her breasts her back arched, pressing her round bottom into the hollow of my pelvis. My mouth descended to the fluttering spot on her neck. I put the brush down and slid my arms around her, nipping her there gently. 'Mmm,' she breathed. 'I thought you were doing my hair.'

'I am finished, so I thought I would move on to other things.' I whispered in her ear, half teasing, half serious in my intent to have her now. Careful not to mar the silk, my hands palmed her breasts under the fabric of her gown, cursing the stiff undergarment that held their softness imprisoned. One hand then crept downwards, pressing lightly between the juncture of her thighs. The thought of all those layers of silk obscuring her taut, wet heat sent a lurch of raw lust through me, and my fangs ran out.

Her eyes met mine in the mirror, her face a mask of intense desire. Her words were so unsteady they were almost slurred, and the temperature of her soft, breakable human body shot up like sparks from a fire. 'No, Bill...y..you will mess up my dress.'

'I would very much like to despoil this dress,' I hissed. 'But I shall remove it.' My fingers crept to the zipper under her arm, and she tried to pull away from my grasp, to no avail.

'No, Bill,' she said more firmly. 'We will be late. And we don't have time for a bath. And my hair...' She protested, but I could feel her need for me in her blood, so I continued, unfastening the gown as I laid harsh kisses on her quivering neck. 'You are mine, you cannot deny me,' I murmured persuasively. 'I want the scent of your sex on me. I want to mark you so no one will dare to touch what is mine.'

'Oh my god,' she whimpered, her face flushing crimson as she slumped against me in defeat, the supple curves of her body slowly revealed as the dress slid to the floor in a frothy heap. I picked it up and flashed to the couch, gently laying it flat across the upholstery so it wouldn't crease, and returned to hear her add- 'That's so incredibly sexist...'

I snorted in amusement. 'But I think you like it,' I said knowingly, picking her up off the rug, pushing her thin petticoats up her smooth thighs so they did not block my path, and I perched her on the edge of the dresser, hairpins and make up clattering to the floor. Then my mouth was on hers, stealing her breath as my fingers crept inside her flimsy undergarment, finding her as slick as honey. I stroked her, swirling my thumb around her clit and dabbling my fingers inside, stretching her gently to receive me. She sobbed and pressed up into my hand, her knees gripping my waist. I couldn't unfasten my trousers fast enough, blindly fumbling to free my erection as I kissed her. She fell back against the mirror as I bore down upon her, more items toppling to the floor.

Her arms linked around my neck and I lifted her onto me, blessing my unnatural strength and reflexes that allowed me to penetrate her so smoothly and abruptly. She coiled around me like a vine, throwing her head back to scream sharply, her face a picture of blissful torment. She had confessed to me once that I had ruined her for other men, that no one, human or other, would be capable of giving her such pleasure. It had saddened me as well as thrilled me.

I rocked her upon my length, lunging deep inside her heat, laying absent kisses upon her face and throat and breasts as I watched our reflections in the mirror, transfixed by the image of myself, seeming fully dressed in evening wear, with a dishevelled, wanton girl wrapped around my cock. Her petticoats were bunched around her waist so I could fondle her buttocks, and her nipples poked from above her brassiere, as red and plump as her lips, which I returned to again and again, puncturing her lower lip in my frenzy. I suckled at the tiny wound, growling in my throat, surrendering to the selfish urges tugging at my senses.

The pressure began to build in my loins, I needed to take her harder, so I spun her around, sending our fused bodies crashing against the nearest wall, so fast it no doubt made her giddy. She cried out in surprise, her dilated eyes blinking dazedly, then moaned as if her heart was being torn out, rolling her head back and forth as I picked up the pace, using the wall for leverage. Her muscles gripped me along the entire length of my shaft, the yielding entrance to her womb caressing the tip of me as I hit her limit. I opened myself to the frail bond, swimming in what she was feeling along with the pleasured noises she was making. I felt the madness and ecstasy of her onrushing orgasm, and love, pure and primal and honest.

I knew she would never voice it, never risk her heart when she was happy to risk everything else to be with me, and I knew it would eventually destroy us. But for now I revelled in its warmth, the false sense of being alive and human and vulnerable, even as my bloodlust clawed at my chest and I thrust into her so violently her body hit the wall with bone shaking thuds. I buried my face in her breasts, seeking the beat of her heart, my hand slipping downward to guide her with me to climax. Her nub was hot and swollen, a delicate manipulation sent her cries to a higher pitch, I reared my head back to strike and feed, hissing in warning.

'Nooo,' she moaned, throwing her head back to offer me her neck. 'Mark me, bite me where everyone can see.'

The invitation, the sweet torture of her taut, wet clasp, the softness of her curves, the call of her blood, the lapping waves of emotions that flowed through my mind, I near sobbed in gratitude as I took what was offered, sinking my fangs into her prickling throat, mindless happiness exploding in me as I emptied myself into her rippling, liquid heat. I lapped at the gushing wound hungrily, still not tired of the sweet-sharp taste of her, my hips circling, pressing her limp form against the wall as she twitched and struggled weakly, her orgasm seeming to go on beyond her endurance.

I dragged myself away before I was entirely sated, cleaning and closing the mark of my bite, located high and proud on her throat were no one could miss it. She began to slide from my grasp, her lids fluttering closed in exhaustion, so I carried her to the bed, disentangling her and laying her down. I darted to the kitchen to fetch a glass of water and her bottle of vitamins, hearing her groan weakly at my loss inside her. Careless of my clothes, I lay down next to her, holding her head up so she could drink the pills down.

When I gently placed her head back on the pillow I noted her make up was smeared and her face and chest flushed and gleaming, but her coiffure was still immaculate. She smelt of me and I of her, her panties gone and her breasts bare, her limbs slack and relaxed, a smile flickering on her lips. After dozing for a minute on my shoulder, her heart slowing down from its frantic pace, she mumbled and turned her head to kiss me. 'I must look a total mess.'

'It is not so bad, and easily fixed,' I murmured, tracing the hollow between her breasts before regretfully putting them away underneath the stiff lace of her bra.

'Is Queenie going to smite us if we're late?' She said cheekily, smothering a yawn.

I choked back a laugh and gave her a quelling look. 'Promise me you will not talk like that at the palace,' I said gently. 'It would be most unwise.'

Juliet huffed and sat up abruptly, but I pulled her back down to me, rubbing her back as I draped her across my chest. She immediately calmed. 'I wish we could just stay in bed all night like we usually do,' she said in a small, sulky voice.

'I wish so too,' I replied, the regret and frustration swarming from their hiding place in the corner of my mind. 'We will pay our respects, conduct my business and go,' I added, reassuring myself as well as her. 'And you will look beautiful and do me proud.'

She sniffed, but she wasn't immune to flattery, so she lifted her head to smile at me grudgingly. 'I forgot to tell you how gorgeous you look in that tux. I was kind of speechless when you came in, and then you distracted me as always.' She toyed with my shirt, which was remarkably free of make up or blood, then sighed heavily and turned away, swinging her feet to the floor.

As I watched her disappear into the bathroom, I fought the urge to follow her; a sudden, irrational dart of fear making me not want her out of my sight for a minute. Instead I checked myself, rearranged my clothing and got to my feet, tidying the mess I had made in front of the dressing table as I waited for her to return. I dearly hoped the evening would be as dull and civilised as Eric had predicted.

But even if there was none of the accustomed blood and debauchery and mayhem, this being an event to celebrate our assimilation into the real world after all, it was unlikely my human would emerge from the palace with all her illusions of me intact. She loved me, but she did not know the reality, and now she was going to see it in all its sordid glory.

**


	8. Chapter 8

_Hi you guys, this is the last of my hoarded chapters. I've yet to write Part Nine. I will get round to it soon, how fast depends on the encouragement I get ;) The story has some ways to go yet. Thanks to all of you that have left me reviews. See you soon(ish). _

******

**Part Eight **

A scant half hour later, I was handing my lady out of the car while a bored palace valet, a Shifter by the strong smell of him, waited around to park it in the secure lot next door. We both looked pristine, the faint scent of sex the only evidence of our hasty coupling, aside from the marks on Juliet's neck. She had been quiet in the car, her face wary and shuttered, but now her brilliant eyes were wide as she took in the beauty of the palace, the ten foot high steel gates thrown open to reveal the dainty marble building, and the bodies streaming along the paved walkway between the reflecting pools.

Her architect's mind was stirred and she chattered about its elegance, the green and white veined stone which was very rare and incredibly expensive, as I escorted her inside. I half listened, my senses on full alert. The guests were a mix of vampires, Weres, Shifters, even demons, and a few human companions. These were mostly the dull eyed, self destructive kind, the women in cheap, revealing gowns- Fangbangers in the new parlance. The type of humans who flocked to Eric's bar in Shreveport even before the Great Revelation, thinking it was a goth club.

As we were admitted by the guards, both of whom nodded to me in recognition, Juliet fell silent and looked around discreetly, her hold on my arm growing tighter. She knew a vampire when she saw one, but did not know of the other strange creatures that shared her world. 'I didn't realise there would be so many normal people here!' She whispered, and seemed to breathe out for the first time in minutes.

The dark skinned guard I recognised from the dessert restaurant came toward us, smiling broadly at Juliet, and I remembered his name; Rasul, an Egyptian originally. I went en garde, but he merely bowed, his flashing dark eyes eliciting a nervy smile from my human. 'Mr. Compton, you must introduce me to your ravishing companion,' he said charmingly.

Juliet went to answer for herself, but I spoke first. 'This is Juliet. She is mine,' I said firmly. She shot me a sharp look, then inclined her head to the vampire. He was not a bad sort, quite sane as I recalled, but I knew he was interested in her.

'Enchante, Juliet. I am Rasul,' he said with a flash of white teeth. 'Mr Compton is a dear friend of the palace, but I haven't seen you here before. I am devastated we have been deprived of your company for so long.'

'It's not really my scene,' she replied with a wider smile. 'But it certainly is beautiful.'

'Be sure to tell our Queen that. She is most proud of her recent renovations,' he said with another flashy grin, then dragged his intent gaze back to me. 'The Queen is busy receiving at present, but you should meet with her in her private salon in half an hour.'

I nodded, swallowing my unease at the formal summons. 'Thank you, Rasul. I will take Juliet to find some refreshment,' I said said stiffly.

'Go and enjoy the ball. We have many human beverages to choose from,' he said, waving us away with a flourish. 'But I must insist on a dance with your lady later.'

He bowed to Juliet again, and she blushed and laughed, not saying yes or no as I spirited her away. 'Do you have to start with that "mine" stuff already?' She hissed at me discreetly.

'He is interested in you. He was scanning us to establish whether you were available to lend out,' I hissed back. 'Do you wish to be borrowed?'

'He seemed perfectly nice,' she sniffed. 'And eww no, I certainly do not.' Her manner was suddenly cool, and it irked me. I was at a loss on how to conduct myself, as I had never taken a human companion I cared about to a function such as this.

We entered the bar area, located in a lavish green and gold anteroom off the ballroom, where a band played jazz tunes. Juliet fetched a glass of champagne off a passing waiter's tray, which she gulped thirstily. Within a minute we had drawn curious stares, and a few vampires of my acquaintance started to trickle over. It was the first time they had seen me with someone I had claimed, and they were naturally intrigued. I murmured pleasantries while Juliet stood fuming beside me. They acted towards her exactly as vampires did towards a lower life form, albeit an attractive one. They looked her over, complimented me on my good taste, one even leaning in to sniff her delicately, but only one or two spoke to her directly. She wasn't a woman that was used to being patronised or ignored, but I gritted my teeth and played along, keeping a firm hand on her waist. She was eyecatching enough with her beautiful gown and elegant bearing; I did not want to cause additional interest by forcing people to treat her as an equal.

She took another glass of wine as I talked with an old acquaintance from my dark Chicago days, her angry eyes raking the room. A few of the humans and Weres were already noisily drunk; one scantily clad slattern was stretched across the laps of two vampires, being groped intimately, their fangs out. When one bit into the girl's breast, Juliet quickly looked away with an obvious shudder. My acquaintance wished her a pleasant evening, and she forced a smile on her face and nodded, and as he winked at me knowingly and glided off, she turned to glare at me. 'I feel like a retarded child,' she whispered furiously.

I sighed and refrained from saying what I was thinking; to my peers she essentially was. 'You know I do not think that,' I said gently. 'I regret that I had to bring you here, but I warned you that this is what it would be like.' I waved my hand discreetly at the drunks, the haughty, strange looking vampires, the girl being fed on in the corner.

She subsided, her anger receding as she looked into my eyes and saw the frustration there, and laid her cheek against mine, turning away from the scene to hide. As I hugged her briefly I saw a tall, blonde figure striding towards us, and for once I was glad to see Eric Northman. As promised, he had left his bar in the capable hands of his child, Pam, and had opted to come, though he disliked paying court to the Queen. He was wearing his own eye catching variation on evening dress; an unbuttoned shirt, waistcoat and snug black trousers, his long hair tied back neatly. Most of the women in the bar were shooting him longing glances, and when Juliet spotted him a highly amused look danced on her face, something I had not managed to achieve since we had left her apartment.

He headed straight for her, and she left my side as he took her hand, bringing it to his lips gallantly. 'Ahh, my fiercest critic. You look positively virginal in that dress. It's enough to make any man want to ravish you on the spot,' he said, with a familiar smirk I did not care for, remembering well his rude interruption a few days past. Juliet snorted and pulled away, her brows arched. 'Tell me, my sweet, how do I look?' He purred, standing before her and preening shamelessly.

She looked him up and down and tapped her chin consideringly, then giggled. 'You look like the cover of a trashy romance novel. I'd lose the ponytail, Captain Blood,' she drawled.

He threw his head back and laughed in delight. I could not help but chuckle myself. 'It's a good thing you amuse me so much, Miss Polloni. I don't normally let little human girls insult me so extravagantly.' He grinned at her, no hint of threat in his voice. I had seen him knock people senseless for much less, but he always did have a good sense of humour.

She shrugged, feigning boredom. 'Well, you had to ask,' she said airily, and returned to me, twining her fingers in mine. I was glad she now looked happier, even if I mistrusted the cause.

'Bill,' Eric said with a nod. 'I think I was right. This ball is boring as hell. Everyone is so well behaved it was hardly worth the trip down from Shreveport.'

My eyes slid over to the intoxicated humans, the half naked meal, who was staggering away from her two paramours. Another male human was backed up in a corner by an amorous female vampire who I knew liked nothing more than taking her meals home for some twisted sport in her dungeon. 'Yes, it is quite tame,' I said dryly. 'But it is fitting, given the occasion.'

'Ah yes, the wondrous Revelation,' he said cynically. 'I have to admit it was a good idea after all. My bar is making money hand over fist. I have bus loads of tourists coming in every week, and hordes of stupid college students from all over the state. The come and gawk and drink like fish. Pam finds it a trial, but she's a born businesswoman,' he imparted, looking proud.

Juliet stopped fidgeting, turning her attention from the fine music coming from the ballroom, I must take her for a dance before the Queen called for me. 'You own a bar?' She said to Eric curiously.

'Yes, Fangtasia.' She snickered at the name. 'I was wanting to speak with you about my plans for renovation. Do you work on interiors? I think the black, bat cave look is too obvious,' he said to her, his blue eyes gleaming with interest.

'At last, someone talking to me like I wasn't just a pretty snack machine,' she said sarcastically.

Eric snorted. 'You are, darling. But do you have other uses. Come, be nice and give me some free professional advice.'

'I'm flattered, I think,' she said acidly, then sighed. 'Okay, what did you have in mind?'

After that they were away, speaking of layout and colour in a very businesslike fashion. Bored and thinking it was safe to leave them to it, I went to the bar to fetch a goblet of Tru Blood and some more wine for Juliet, but as I returned I found Eric leaning into her, taking an extravagant sniff and whispering something in her ear. She blushed and took two quick steps backwards, her skirts swinging. 'I should damn well slap you for that, but you'd probably rip my arm off,' she hissed at him angrily, before seeing me and flushing an even deeper shade of rose. 'Um, can we go dance now?' She said to me hurriedly, taking her glass and my arm, ushering us towards the ballroom.

I glowered at Eric over my shoulder as we left. 'What did he say to offend you?' I said roughly, not liking the way she appeared both enraged and on the verge of laughter. I put down my glass of blood untouched, and swept her onto the floor. She had swallowed her wine in two quick gulps, and the cloudiness of intoxication was creeping into her green eyes. I frowned at her, displeased with her behaviour.

She blinked and gave a weary groan, I probed her feelings and found irritation and shame. 'Nothing, he was just being disgusting. He's a total jerk,' she muttered. 'Please Bill, don't leave me alone again in this place. It's full of bad vibes.' Her hands clutched at my jacket, I relaxed an inch and forced a smile on my face. It was not her fault, she was coping with her unease the best way she could, by drinking and responding to the only other person she knew here. Of course Eric would take advantage of that.

'Sweetheart,' I crooned, stroking her cheek. 'I don't intend to leave you alone for a second if I can help it.' Her lashes fluttered at the smooth cadence of my voice, her lips parting, and as I led her into the centre of the floor and held her close, the simple pleasure of the dance erased the pinched, harassed look from her face. The ballroom was a riot of colour, handsomely dressed women and men moving in perfect time to the lively music. Many admiring glances were thrown our way; we made a striking couple in our old fashioned clothes, my woman almost fairy-like in her ruffled lilac gown, our two dark heads entwined. I pressed a light kiss to her forehead, swelling with pride. I should like to dance with her all night and avoid all the people around us. But then I saw Rasul grinning at us from the edge of the dancefloor, and I knew that was not going to be possible.

I sighed heavily, the weight of duty settling on my shoulders, and spun Juliet in the direction of the door. 'The Queen is ready to receive us,' I murmured into her hair. She rolled her eyes and fell into a decorous walk behind me, her fingers gripping mine and her eyes on the floor.

We followed Rasul down a marble flagged corridor once we cleared the crowded bar, the sea blue walls hung with priceless artwork, and Juliet's gaze flicked up to take in the paintings. Rubens, Boucher, Degas...the Queen was originally from France and preferred the female form, and females in her bed. Seventeen years old when she was turned, she was as sharp as a blade underneath all her affected teenage mannerisms, and as ruthless as a snake. She had been Queen of Louisiana for hundreds of years, and was well respected, even loved by her children and minions.

Despite being a mere male, she liked me and always found employment for me since I had returned to the state of my birth. I had joined her not long after I had been released, and having an intense dislike for my Maker and knowing how much I hated her, had welcomed me into her employ. I was a gentleman, an idealist and yet a pragmatist, with the ability to stand aside from others and view matters objectively; she had explained to me that these were valuable traits to possess amidst a queendom of unruly, bloodthirsty fools. While I appreciated her patronage and the wealth and protection it brought me; a vampire who wandered alone and disliked my own kind, it did not mean I could trust her, and the longer I spent with Juliet the less I wanted to take part in her political machinations. It was dangerous and lonely work, and not a job I could share the details of with my human. Hence I had been avoiding Sophie-Anne for many weeks, fearing another mission was on the cards.

'William, I have missed you,' she purred, as we entered her salon, finding the exquisite redhead reclined on a chaise in a diaphanous green gown, two humans from her stable on their knees in front of her, one of them bearing fresh marks on her throat and breasts. A drop of blood trickled from the Queen's painted lips, which she licked away neatly. I checked Juliet's face, which was a shocked mask, and bowed slightly, shielding her with my body.

The Queen flicked her hand dismissively at the humans, who rose to leave, and beckoned me closer. I lifted her porcelain hand to kiss it when it was offered. 'My Queen,' I murmured. 'I do apologise for not being more attentive.'

Her piercing gaze rose to take in my human critically, who bobbed an awkward curtsy, her green eyes very reluctant. 'And this is the human who has stolen you from me?' The Queen said archly. 'Come here girl.' She waved Juliet forward, and I took her hand and stroked it, willing her to speak.

'Your majesty,' she said with an inclination of her dark head. Sophie-Anne's eyes crept over her lush body, her pretty, pointed face, and a lusty gleam appeared in her eyes, her nostrils flaring.

'She's delicious, William. Well done. I'm so pleased you've finally found some amusement, Humans are such fun,' she said with a patronising smile at Juliet. 'We hear you are an architect, Juliet. What do you think of my awesome palace? Do tell.'

'I think its gorgeous. The most elegant building in the city,' Juliet said politely. 'I never knew it existed until tonight. Its an original Napoleonic neo-classical mansion house, isn't it?'

The Queen clapped her hands in delight. 'Yes indeed! Ooh, she's so smart!' She said to me gleefully. 'I like her, William. You must bring her here more often.' I inwardly growled, but gave her a cool smile. Juliet's fingers were squeezing mine so tightly it almost hurt, and I could sense the fear and resentment rising in her, but she bravely offered a 'thank you, your majesty', and they spoke a few more words about the Queen's latest decorating spree while I stood dumbly and wondered why I was here. Where would I be sent to this time, and how long would I be gone?

I visibly twitched, impatient with the small talk, and the Queen noticed and sighed. 'Sweetie, I need to borrow your man for a minute. Secret vampire stuff, ' she said to Juliet. 'Go outside and party, I'll be done with him soon.'

I knew she would be sent out so we could talk in private, but I felt a lurch of fresh unease when Juliet looked at me with scared eyes. I walked her towards the door, my hand stroking the warm skin of her upper back. 'Bill,' she said anxiously. 'You promised me-'

'Wait outside the door,' I whispered soothingly. 'If you meet anyone, do not forget what I told you. Don't look them in the face, lest you be glamoured. And stay within sight of the guards.'

'Whatever,' she muttered resentfully, jerking away from my touch. I watched her leave the room without a backward glance at me, and suppressed my worry and turned back to the waiting Queen, struggling against the urge to dash out after her.

'Have a seat,' the Queen said, pointing to a gold brocade chair. I perched there uncomfortably, squirming under her sharp scrutiny. 'So you bonded with her. Silly, silly man. That's not like you at all,' she tutted. 'In the end, there's only three options with bonded humans.' She lifted her hand, spelling them out for me mercilessly. 'Turn her, and I know you'd never do that. Kill her, or glamour the hell out of her when you tire of her or she moves onto to someone else. You're too fucking soft hearted for number two, so you'll drain your strength on the last.' She rolled her eyes, her perfect face gleaming with malice. 'I wonder what your Maker would say about your latest conquest?' She said casually. 'The King of Florida is apparently quite tired of her antics with the German tourists in Miami. It won't be long until he kicks her bony ass out of his kingdom. Lucky for you and Miss Juliet, I won't receive her in this state. Crazy ass, jealous bitch.'

I took her taunts for what they were, a stark reminder of her patronage. 'Let's get down to business shall we?' I said icily, my hands bunching into fists. Her tinkling laughter sawed at my coiled nerves. I listened for Juliet's heartbeat outside in the hall, but the room was soundproofed.

'You're no fun to tease,' the Queen pouted. 'Very well, Mr. Boring. I assume you've been following the American Vampire League? That awful butch woman, Nan Flanagan, was here the other week, doing a tour of all the monarchs in the country. Apparently she didn't get a good reception everywhere, but I humoured her,' she said dismissively, inspecting her blood red nails.

'They seem to be a very sensible organisation.' I said cautiously, wondering where this was going.

'I thought you'd think so. That's why I'm lending you out. Sub-contracting your services, if you like,' she smirked. 'I need someone in their camp who can blend in. Who actually gives a shit about their fight for vampire rights, and who can represent my interests.'

'How long will this assignment be for?' I said abruptly, knowing I was not going to like the answer. This was not a mere spying mission, but a proper post. I had a feeling I would not be seeing New Orleans for some time.

'Oh, for at least a year. I hope you like Washington. That's where they're based. You can take your human with you, if you like, but you cannot of course tell her anything of what you're doing.'

I absorbed this sudden shift in my horizons in a moment of silence between us. I did not like Washington; it was deathly cold in winter and full of loathsome politicians and lobbyists all year round- grey, greedy men in suits. It had no heart, no warmth. I could not picture Juliet there with me, playing the good wife at home, waiting for me to return from meetings with a smile and no questions on her lips. She was too clever and independent to contemplate such an empty life, built on lies. She belonged here, at home in the earthy sensuality of the South, with her promising career and her daytime friends and interests. The sadness was like a leaden weight in my chest, and I only half listened to the Queen when she began chattering at length about money, property rights, rights to representation in Congress, and such nonsense.

I opened myself to the blood bond, trying to feel the girl who I would soon be losing, and went rigid. A flood of panic filled my senses, then terror and pain. I leaped from my chair, and the Queen looked at me in annoyed enquiry, tapping a satin-shod foot. 'Something is wrong,' I said urgently. 'Excuse me for a moment.' I dashed to the door, not hearing her answer, wincing at the agony of my humans distress. I shifted to vampire speed, my fangs emerging and my hands curving into claws, following the faint alarm calls along what seemed like endless corridors. I only hoped I could get there before it was too late.

Someone was hurting her, and they would pay.  
_  
**_


	9. Chapter 9

_Hi there, back sooner than expected (I really am the laziest writer, ever). Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, especially those who don't usually pick Mr. Compton as their reading material. This is another longish chapter, and events probably don't go down as expected at the cliffhanger. I hope you enjoy it._

_**_

**Part Nine **

I ran, simultaneously feeling for Juliet and trying to navigate my path. As I reached the bar after what felt like an age I slowed to human speed, finding everything as we had left it; loud conversation, brittle laughter, bright expensive clothes, cold, malicious faces, and faces flushed with drink. I closed my eyes, confused, focusing on my human's faint call. She was no longer frightened, which relieved me somewhat. Someone must have come to her aid, but she was still in terrible pain and shock.

I sprinted across the ballroom to the bar I remembered was on the opposite side, a breath of wind, stirring the gowns of the females dancing and causing some to squeak in surprise. When I entered the room I immediately scented blood; Juliet's blood, and someone else's. I came to a sudden stop with a growl, moving into an attack stance. But she was not there. There were signs of a struggle; upturned furniture and broken glasses, a group of people chattering excitedly in the corner, eyes bright with their enjoyment of the brief drama, and several palace guards. Rasul stepped forth with his hands palm out, stopping any attempt to leap on the figure that was shoved against a wall. It was one of the vampires that had been feeding on the fangbanger in the other bar, his hands bound in silver. The stench of his burning flesh wrinkled my nose. His face was slowly healing from being smashed to a bloody pulp, and I could smell Juliet's blood through the rank mix of scents.

My lips curled back, and I hissed at Rasul, near out of my mind with rage. 'Compton, calm down. She's safe now,' he ordered.

'What happened? Where is she?' I snarled. The vampire in chains was whimpering pathetically at the pain of his wounds, hunching defensively into a ball at the feet of the guards on either side, his black eyes bright with fear. I sensed he was young and stupid, but smart enough to know the consequences of feeding on another vampire's human without permission. If I was prevented from killing him, I would make sure he would be sent to the Magister for punishment.

I shook myself, clearing my head of the red mist of fury, concentrating on Rasul's quick, low voice. 'From what the witnesses say, your human wandered in here unaccompanied to get herself a drink. This idiot approached her, and she gave him short shrift. Didn't look him in the face while he was trying out his glamour. Clever girl that,' he smirked. 'He had been feeding on drunk humans all evening, and was quite drunk himself. He wouldn't take no for an answer, and attacked her. Perhaps he thought she was available?'

'No,' I spat. 'He saw her with me. Get to the point, who intervened? Where the hell is she?' As much as I wanted to hear what had transpired, I was desperate to find her. I did not trust anyone in the palace, and hated owing a debt to someone for her rescue. I felt un-manned by this mystery hero, and the sickening feeling added to my anger and worry. Though I could feel she was alive and unafraid, I itched to move.

Rasul rolled his dark eyes, not the least bothered by my jittery and frightening appearance. 'Eric Northman. He sailed in here, knocked the fool into next week, picked up your girl and flew out of the room, calling us in as he passed us in the hall,' he said, shaking his head in reluctant admiration. 'I've always thought he was an arrogant prick, but I've got to admit it was neat work. The ladies were all in a flutter when I got here. I think he took her upstairs to the guest rooms.'

If it was possible for me to retch, I would have. I spun on my heel and left the scene; the whimpering assailant, the callous witnesses, the bemused guards, all left in the dust as I hunted for the nearest set of stairs, my feet barely touching the carpet. The upstairs landing was quiet, and I slowed to a catlike walk, making no sound, suddenly mistrustful of my human and naturally suspicious of Eric's motives for such a show of gallantry. My emotions were a poisonous brew, worse than anything I had felt in decades, and I so I also mistrusted myself. I was a thread away from snapping, something I never allowed myself to do, and when I heard disembodied voices floating out into the hallway, I stopped, struggling to bring myself under control.

The door to their suite was open, and I felt a modicum of relief when I heard Eric's dry words. 'If you're going to throw up, give me some warning. I hate it when humans puke.'

'You're such a gentleman,' Juliet's voice replied, thin and wavering but still laced with her usual sarcasm. 'Why are you still here anyway?'

'Such gratitude for my daring rescue,' Eric countered. 'I'm babysitting you until your absent lover turns up, because you obviously can't be left alone for a minute without getting in the shit.' He paused, his amusement evident though I could not see him. 'And because you're bleeding so deliciously all over your dress. I find it quite a turn on.'

'Of course you would,' I heard her snort, then say harshly. 'Bill doesn't even know what happened, he's still busy with the Queen.' I flinched at the anger in her voice, but did not stir, continuing to eavesdrop like a petty fool.

'You're a silly girl in many ways,' Eric sighed. 'Putting aside your complete ignorance of our ways, the fact you're so obviously in love with someone you know nothing about, you're continuing to bleed to death in my lap and you won't let me help you. A bite will not heal without saliva to coagulate it, or blood.' He clicked his tongue in vexation.

Now was the time to move and stop this cosy chat, but my feet seemed rooted to the floor. 'Yeah I know, I'm a total idiot,' Juliet replied, her voice achingly sad. There was silence, broken by the rustling of her dress as she moved, then she added- 'Ouch...I didn't know a vampire bite could hurt so fucking much.'

'A bite here and there during sex is all you've had. Now you know different. We're designed for the kill, like any predator,' Eric explained, surprisingly patient. 'The scum that attacked you was a newborn. They're always hungry. He could have drained you in seconds. Good thing I was passing, Bill would be most upset to emerge from his meeting to find you dead.'

I heard her start to shudder, the shock now settling into her bones. 'Bill doesn't get upset,' she said bitterly. 'I swear sometimes he doesn't feel anything at all.'

'Now you're being very silly.'

I flinched again, wanting to turn and walk away from her anger, her disappointment. I had failed her, and there was no possibility of avoiding that fact. And yet I was angry at _her_, for disobeying me and placing us both in this situation. I steeled myself to enter the room, a thick wall of ice veiling my inner turmoil.

'Thank you for saving my silly ass,' I heard her say to Eric, then she sighed heavily. 'The room is going all fuzzy, and I'm scared shitless. I give up. He's not coming. I accept your offer, go ahead and clean me up, but no funny business. I am not interested in getting you all horny.'

'How gracious of you, Miss Polloni,' he purred. I didn't wait to hear the sound of his mouth on her throat, lest it splinter my self control. I swept into the room in a blur, finding his blonde head bent over the girl cradled in his lap. Too late; he was lapping at the ragged wound, his lids heavy with sensual enjoyment. Her eyes were closed, her neck tilted to give him access, and she gave a soft moan, merging with the rumble of pleasure that sounded in his chest.

He knew I was there the instant I entered of course, but did not stop. I did not want a confrontation, or to let him know how furious I was that it was _he_ that rescued her, that it was _he_ that now had her sweet taste on his lips. 'I hope I am not interrupting anything,' I said, my voice chill and remote. 'I came the moment I sensed trouble, but it took me a while to find you.'

Juliet started and pushed Eric away, who lifted his head to smirk at me. I ignored him, watching her as she struggled to stand, the ice thickening at the flush of guilt appearing in her shadowed eyes. The wound on her throat was two jagged holes that erased my own mark; the possessive act during our lovemaking achieving nothing, the scent of sex on her lush body only inflaming the greed of my rivals. There were bruises on her arms and her bodice was ripped, displaying the curve of one breast, the fabric stained with rivulets of blood. She was so white she reminded me of a lily stomped under the heel of a boot.

I held out my hand to her, and she took it, the reluctance in her posture very evident. 'I owe you a debt,' I said to Eric calmly. 'But do not expect me to like it, or repay the debt with her services.'

Offensively he licked his lips, and snickered. 'If I had a woman who tasted like that, I wouldn't want to share her either, so I forgive your rudeness.' He waved his fingers at Juliet. 'See you again, I hope.'

Trembling with rage, I turned my back on him, dragging the mute, miserable woman at my side into the crook of my arm to support her limp weight. She needed the soothing balm of my voice to reassure her that everything was fine, that I would make her safe and well, and that I was not angry, but I could not bring myself to comfort her, to acknowledge what had just happened. 'I will take you home.' I said coldly, and she nodded, her emerald eyes bright with unshed tears.

I averted my gaze from her and we left the room, the silence between enduring; a dense, grey fog of hurt. Not stopping to send a message to Sophie Anne, we slipped downstairs and free from the palace unseen. To ensure we met no one outside, I lifted her into my arms and flashed across the walkway to the carpark, the scent of two men on her despoiled body locking my teeth together like a vice.

*

On the way home, I spoke only to ask her whether she wanted me to take her to a doctor, as I knew of one who dealt with companions and servants without asking any questions, but she refused. I then insisted she must eat to regain some strength, and she directed me to the nearest fast food restaurant, where I ordered for her in the drive through facility; a milkshake and ice cream, automatically avoiding the fried food. She took the meal and gobbled it quickly, knowing well she desperately needed the protein and sugar. In the dim light of the car I could see she still looked pale and pinched and blank with shock, and she looked even worse when I got her upstairs and undressed, wrapping her in a robe an placing her on the bed.

I fetched a damp cloth to wipe the blood from her chest, unbound her hair, brought her fruit juice and her vitamins, as attentive as a mother but as dumb as a post. I chewed over the events of the night, wondering what I could have done to prevent the attack. She had ignored my orders and wandered off on her own in a fit a pique, but she had cause to be upset. I should never have taken to her to the palace and I had forseen such an incident, but I had no choice. So I took the blame, feeling its leaden weight settle on my shoulders with all the other burdens of my long life.

But I could not force the foul images from my mind, of her offering her neck to Eric, and their vivacious flirtation in the bar beforehand, and her harsh words about my person. I sat on the edge of of the bed, staring at a framed sketch on the wall, tracing its strong, oblique lines with dull eyes, ignoring the pleading look on her face, her soft hand reaching for mine. 'Bill, please talk to me,' she said, her voice small and uncertain. I did not reply.

The mattress shifted as she moved towards me, trying to crawl into my lap, but then I caught _his_ scent again and recoiled from her. 'You smell like him,' I hissed, without thinking.

She froze, her eyes filled with hurt, then boiling rage. With amazing strength, she leaped from the bed, bristling like an angry cat, and lifted her arm. The slap sounded like the crack of a horse whip, strong enough to sting me momentarily. 'You bastard! She shrieked. 'Do you think I wanted any of this? To be patronised and insulted, and attacked so I had to be rescued by fucking Eric, while you had a nice chat with your bitchy boss? How dare you?' Exhausted, she staggered, and I was flooded with shame, watching her crumple at my feet, weeping as if her heart was breaking. I had never seen her cry, though must have done so when she was alone. It destroyed me, the wall of ice coming crashing down.

I fell to my knees, gathering her up in my arms. She struggled against me uselessly, cursing and slapping, but my grip was like iron, making her frail bones creak. I licked at her damp cheeks, bathing in the sweet scent of her tears, my pride and affront gone. 'I am sorry, forgive me,' I murmured brokenly. 'I do not deserve you.' _And soon I will leave you. I do not when I can return to you and I think it is good that I don't, and yet it hurts me more than you will ever know. _

My secret, silent words wrenched at my throat, pleading to get out, but now was not the time. I claimed her mouth in a fierce kiss, smothering her curses and sobs, and she gave up the fight, melting into me, her soft, bruised body shaking violently. Immediately I wanted her, longed to erase the stain of other hands and mouths, and I despised myself anew. I needed to give, not take. I whispered more words of apology into her mouth, the curve of her neck, showering kisses and promises that never again would she come to any harm.

The rawness of her misery tore at my dead heart, and I knew she was mourning for the end of us and all we had shared, the love she felt so strongly meeting a blank wall of impossibility. I wished with all my being I could be the man she wanted and needed. The man that she saw in me from the first time she noticed me across a crowded bar, but who I was blind to myself. 'Shh, sweetheart, please don't cry. I am a cad, a bastard...none of this is your fault. Hit me again if it will make you feel better,' I pleaded, lifting her face from my shoulder to look into her eyes, red rimmed and swollen, but still beautiful.

She sniffled wretchedly, a glimmer of amusement flaring in her irises. 'Don't tempt me.' She was a dead weight in my grasp, utterly drained, her warm, honeyed skin chill to the touch. 'Take me to bed,' she sighed, linking her arms around my neck. 'Take me to bed and hold me, and don't leave me until you have to. I'm too tired to be angry anymore, and I need you. God help me, I do.'

'Gladly,' I said, laying a kiss on her temple, feeling the worryingly slow pulse of her life force under my lips. She needed blood, and though it was unwise in the circumstances, I had to persuade her to drink from me. I lifted her back onto the bed, untying her robe and settling her under the covers, then shed my stiff, formal clothes, pleased to be free of them at last. I slid in next to her, gathering her up, holding her spooned on her side, her round bottom tucked neatly against my groin, my arm across her breasts. It was a warm night, so the coldness of my limbs did not chill her. I could feel the warmth of her core radiating out despite the clammy texture of her skin.

I was aroused at her proximity and the repressed desire to reclaim her, but I made no advances, humbled at her forgiveness, content to listen to her soft breathing and the thump of her heart. I nosed at her throat, pushing her silky hair out of the way of her wound so I could inspect it properly. Eric had done a good job of cleaning and closing the marks, but I wanted them gone. I wanted the colour to flood back into her face and lingering fear banished from her eyes. 'Don't think about it,' I whispered. 'You are safe now, and you need to sleep.'

She turned her head to look up at me. 'I can't, she replied. 'It was so vile.' She hesitated for a moment, visibly hunting for the right words to explain how she felt. 'When you bite me, it's always when were are having sex, and I love it and want it. It feels good. But the man who attacked me...I didn't want it, and he didn't care that it hurt like hell...it was kind of like being raped.' Her brow creased in distress, and I wondered for a horrible moment if she had suffered such a thing in the past. 'I think I'm a pretty brave person, but I'd never been so scared in my life. I don't know when I'll be able to sleep again...seeing his evil face...and I don't know if I'll ever like being bitten again.'

Fresh tears leaked from her eyes, and I swallowed my guilt and rage to soothe her, catching her lips briefly before speaking. 'You are are very brave,' I reassured her. 'And you never have to worry about that man again, he will be dealt with.' She visibly flinched at the look of death on my face, I shook my head to clear it and forced a gentle smile to blossom forth. 'I have suggestion for you, to make you feel better.'

Her dark brows lifted, and she wiped her face with the back of her hand. 'I doubt anything will, but go on.' She managed a small smile in return.

'Revenge, if you will. You can bite _me_.'

She chuckled, then bared her little teeth. 'I lack the equipment,' she joked, then her face grew serious again. 'I don't want to drink from you, Bill. The last time I did...well, it made me all weird.'

'I was remiss in not explaining its effects,' I said gently. 'But one effect is its healing powers. You lost a lot of blood tonight, and you are bruised and in pain. If you fed from me, you would be cured.'

She looked at me with wonder. 'That's amazing, I never thought...but of course! All the marks I had disappeared that night, and I haven't felt sick since.' She paused, her small fingers stroking my face, toying with my sideburns. 'What else did it do to me? Did it make me feel things I normally wouldn't?' Her gaze was suddenly razor sharp, and I realised she was afraid that my blood had make her fall in love, had tricked her into her infatuation with me and all the pain she had endured as a consequence.

'No, my blood cannot put feelings in your head that weren't already there in some form, it only enhances them,' I said honestly. 'Along with your libido, and the five senses. It also gives me the ability to track you, and to experience what you are feeling.'

She seemed very wary suddenly, her mind working to absorb the implications. 'So...I am an open book to you,' she said slowly. 'Why can't I feel you? Sometimes I think I do, but its just flashes. I thought I was going mad, or caught up in the moment when we're making love.' She shifted in my embrace, the wariness forming into anger. She did not like that I could feel her emotions; vulnerability was not a state she was comfortable with.

'Please let me explain before you get mad.' I begged her. 'To bond with you was something I felt compelled to do, to protect you from others, to give you status as mine. I did it because I care for you; more than any human I have met in my long life. I wanted you so much, Juliet. And to feel what you feel, to have a piece of myself inside you, is an honour I will treasure for always.'

Her face softened and glowed, and we both forgot the terrible events of the night, the drawing away from each other as the tiny cracks in our imperfect, private world began to spread. She kissed me, her hot breath gasping into my parted lips as our tongues entwined. I moved to slide between her thighs, resting my weight on my arms and knees so I wouldn't hurt her, my mouth trailing down her neck to her wonderful breasts, hiding my face in their abundance. 'You old smoothie,' she murmured wryly. 'I like it when you talk to me. I'm getting sick of living half my life in the dark.'

Her nails drew patterns on the skin of my back, and her legs tightened around my flanks possessively, bringing my erection directly against the wet, yielding flesh of her mound. I hesitated, more words ready on my tongue, confessions about my lonely, silent existence before her and how hard it was for me to talk about myself, to allow myself to feel what came naturally to her. But then I remembered the Queen's new orders and the words evaporated. I could not make it harder than it was already going to be.

A spasm of weakness shook her, and she blanched, her hands falling away from my backside, her ardour too much for her in her weakened state. It negated the need to answer. 'Juliet,' I coaxed, reaching to cup her cheek tenderly. 'You can no longer argue. You need to drink from me. I am so worried about you.'

'I'm worried too,' she sighed, frown lines appearing on her brow. 'Alright. As long as it won't make me even more crazy. I feel like hell. You've got to help me though, I don't think I can bite you hard enough.'

'Thank you,' I said huskily, relieved and excited. 'Watch me.' Sharing blood was one of the most exquisite of pleasures, and I felt my hardness dig impatiently into her inner thigh as she focused her cloudy gaze on me. Her legs twined with mine, and she moaned and rubbed against me slightly. Every inch of my flesh tingled at the soft, silken prison of her limbs wrapped around me, and my fangs clicked into place, but the answering desire on her face was marred by a flash of fear. I sunk the sharp points into my lower lip firmly, then coated my tongue in the welling blood, bending to attend to the wound in her throat. I erased the obscene holes, then bit my lip again to reopen the flow of blood as she whimpered and writhed under me.

She took my bottom lip between hers and suckled obediently, electricity crackled up my spine and I stiffened and groaned as my essence trickled down her throat. She made a surprised noise, then snatched at my hair, drawing me closer, pulling at my lip like a famished child. I could feel my blood crawling through her body, making it stronger, her desire sharpening as it worked its strange magic. She lifted her hips in invitation and I entered her, growling low as I sheathed myself to the root, the leap of her heart and her choked screech of pleasure near drawing me into the void of instant climax.

And then I was rolling her over, rocking her gently on my cock as she sobbed into my mouth, licking greedily at the stray drops of blood on my lips and chin as the wound sealed closed. Her hands found mine and pinned them to the bed. She took control of me, rolling her hips to force me deeper into her velvety heat, her swaying hair and breasts tickling my prickling skin. She reared back, her body arching beautifully, her teeth bared, the colour of life flushing her flawless throat, darkening to red in her hard nipples and her blissful face. I tilted my head to the side, offering her my neck, begging her in a broken, raspy voice I barely recognised to bite me, to take more of me inside her. She slammed her teeth down into my flesh with a feral cry, breaking the skin, and I fell off the brink, erupting inside her as she pulled at the shallow cuts, her sex rippling around my pulsing length.

Darkness swallowed me up in its maw, dragging her down with me, where we were safe from the outside world and all its cruel reality. We swam in that mindless paradise for what seemed like hours, but eventually it ended and we were tossed back onto the ravaged bed, gasping for breath and staring at each other with wide eyes. All good things must end, we couldn't stay down there forever.

**


	10. Chapter 10

_Hi there, sorry for the wait. This is a long chapter for me (due to the homage to Tasmanian Devil sex in the middle, book readers will know what I'm talking about), and the final proper chapter in the story. It is not over though, I have two more parts to go- an interlude and an epilogue, coming soon. Your feedback is awesome and brightens my day, so gimme ;) _

_When this fiction turned from a bit of smut into a proper romance, I found a lot of inspiration in a favourite album of mine- Grace by Jeff Buckley. Something about that beautiful voice, and all those songs about dysfunctional love and regret. It kinda fit well. Anyway, pretentious moment over. On with the story..._

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**Part Ten **

The multi-storeyed, glass and steel office building stood at the edge of the old part of New Orleans like an architectural insult, a rude gesture to the gracious, weathered beauty of the buildings surrounding it. We had been directed to a side entrance that was unguarded, Juliet having asked me not to enter through the main lobby due to the conspicuousness of Eric, who looked like the kind of person that would stir any bored security guards sense for trouble. Dusk had just fallen, and I was still somewhat groggy and definitely thirsty; but I was obliged to bring Eric for his free consultation with the girl he had so helpfully rescued. Damned if I would allow him to meet with Juliet without my supervision, so I had left the house after a quick shower and drove to our rendezvous, exchanging only a few stiff words in greeting. I glowered, he smirked, but a debt must be paid, and he wanted Juliet to work her magic on his bar, nothing more it seemed.

He had passed me a USB stick with a set of drawings and images of Fangtasia last night at the palace, before I had paid a little visit to the dungeon in the basement to deal with the vampire that had attacked Juliet, with the Queen's blessing; an action that I would never tell my human about. I had cleaned up carefully afterwards and made sure I visited her when she was on the verge of going to sleep for the night, so she could not read any traces of lingering rage and horror in my mood.

Despite grumbling about the unpaid commission at length before curling up in my arms and going to sleep, Juliet had been working on Eric's project all day secretively. When I called her from the car on the way to her office she had sounded harassed and irritable, her voice clipped and without warmth. I knew many things had been preying on her mind in the last three days of uneasy peace, as certain as my looming departure had been eating away at mine. I still had not told her; acting the coward and avoiding the inevitable, but tonight I must. My few belongings were packed, and the Queen was getting impatient with my dithering. Washington was expecting me; I had an office, a basement apartment, a generous salary and a tedious schedule of meetings already lined up.

Grief dragged at my feet as we mounted the stairs to the tenth floor. I was focused inward, contemplating my empty future, devoid of the warmth of my human to brighten my nights. It may be selfish, but part of my reluctance to tell her of my move was due to my constant inner battle over whether to ask her to come with me. I knew I was not worth the price of giving up everything in her settled life to live with me in Washington, and handing over her fate to a man who was not a man, but a monster, who was incapable of returning her love, and who put her in danger by dragging her into his shadow world.

The hulking figure who crowded the staircase before me halted, and he looked over his shoulder with an exasperated gleam in his blue eyes. 'I can hear you angsting from here,' he said dryly. 'For fuck's sake, Bill, why don't you ask the girl to come with you to Washington?'

'It is none of your concern,' I said, my voice flat and final, but Eric wasn't deterred. He turned around, blocking my path, dressed for a night of sneering at the humans in his bar, as he intended to fly back to Fangtasia as soon as Juliet had given him her new designs for the interiors.

We were truly like chalk and cheese; Eric flashy and sinister in tight black leather, myself in a conservative button up shirt and trousers in navy blue. It was very strange that out of all the vampires I knew, Eric was the one I had the most time for, though he was irritating, arrogant and patronising. 'You know I will pursue her once you leave,' he taunted, his shark like grin signalling mischief.

I laughed without humour, not bothered at all by his words. 'She will tell you to go to hell, you're not her type,' I said with confidence, knowing what was in my human's heart, despite the chemistry between them at the palace.

'I will just take her then. She's worth the effort of some...persuasion,' he replied, with a provocative roll of his eyes. 'I like a woman who will fight back.'

My fangs threatened to emerge, pressing painfully against my jaw, but I didn't react the way he was hoping. 'There are two types of humans,' I said coolly. 'The type you take and use and throw to one side when you tire of them. And those that you hope will come to you of their own accord. I do not think you have met many of the second. Juliet is worth more than a quick glamour and fuck, and you know it.'

'You have me,' he conceded with a tight smile. 'She is beautiful, intelligent, brave and useful. The answer to all your fucking angst is staring you right in the face. Pam has been a wonderful companion to me for many years. I saw the value in her when I met her, I even loved her in my way, and I still do.' I stiffened and turned away, the disgust and panic welling in my chest, seeing the direction of his words and not wanting to hear it. 'No one would harm her if she was your child, and you wouldn't have to keep her in the dark as to your activities.'

Such cold logic, but underneath all the teasing cynicism, the infuriating, know it all bluster, rested a thousand years of experience. To Eric, there was only one option for humans of worth, to mould them into an image of yourself, but I could not abide it. 'I would rather meet the sun than curse her with the life I live,' I hissed, the words echoing in the empty stairwell.

I felt him go rigid, the temperature of the air between us dropping like a stone. 'You utter contempt for our kind is downright insulting, and stupid,' he said, his usually mild voice sharp. I turned back, finding his handsome face contorted with anger before it was smoothed away in an instant, replaced by his usual bland expression, revealing nothing. 'It will probably be the death of you,' he added in a bored tone, turning away with a shrug of his shoulders. 'Shall we proceed?'

'Yes, this conversation is over,' I growled, following his tall figure up the remaining stairs, struggling against the nauseous feeling in my stomach. Flashes of my life as a newborn assaulted my senses, my imprisonment in a blood soaked hell with a woman I despised and desired all at once. I would not, I could not, ever do that to a person, no matter how lonely and desperate I was. I had little control over my existence, blown hither and yon by my service to the Queen and the machinations of my peers, but at least I had control over myself.

In silence, we reached the tenth floor and I swallowed all that I was feeling and plastered a small smile on my face as we entered the glass doors stencilled with the logo of Juliet's firm. The grey and white office space was deserted, the black granite reception desk empty, rows of cubicles greeting us, filled with computers and drawing desks and the bright clutter of humans who were stuck at work for most of their daylight hours. Juliet was bent over a computer with two screens, surrounded by potted plants and a mosaic of pictures, dressed in wilted work attire, a red shirt and black pencil skirt and hose, a pair of ridiculous stilettos on her tiny feet. Her dark hair was drawn into a messy chignon, and I found it oddly sexy that a pen was stuck through the bundle of hair so she could access it easily on the move. Eric halted and whistled, and Juliet looked up, smiling at me with tired eyes before shifting her gaze to glare at him.

'The sexy secretary is in,' Eric drawled, and she snorted, getting to her feet and planting her hands on the swell of her hips.

'Don't be sexist,' she snapped. 'I find it bad enough I'm doing interior design like some dingbat who went to a crappy community college. I'm an architect, damn it.' He laughed, and she turned away from him with a flounce and came towards me. I drew her into my arms, and she laid a brief kiss on my cheek. She was warm and soft as always, and desire flamed in my chest, cut with a burst of anguish that near made me wince. She felt so good, to contemplate leaving her without a backward glance was impossible. 'Hey baby,' she whispered. 'I've had a hell of day. I want to go home and have a bath soooo bad.'

I squeezed her waist and kissed her furrowed brow. 'I need to talk to you about something,' I murmured, forcing the words from my lips.

Her green eyes widened and a shadow flitted through them as quick as breath. Something was definitely bothering her, something more than the events of three nights ago and the emotional turmoil caused by taking my blood. She was completely healed and glowed with health despite her long day in the office, but I knew she had suffered internally from drinking from me. We had not made love since that night and seen each other only briefly, but I could feel her mind much stronger than before. 'What a coincidence, I need to talk to you as well,' she sighed, then wriggled free from my embrace. 'Lets get this over with, so we can go home.'

She walked over to Eric, who was bent over her computer, squinting at the screen and nodding with approval. 'This is very well done,' he said. 'I was right to trust you...I love the red and grey. I insist you come to the reopening after the renovations are done.' He flashed her a seductive glance, his eyes travelling up and down her small figure, but she wasn't in the mood for sparring with him.

'I'll be washing my hair that night,' she said tartly. 'Now sit your big ass down so I can explain the designs. I'm tired and grouchy, so do not fuck with me.'

'What a woman,' he murmured, with a significant look in my direction. I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him a stony stare until he turned his head and meekly complied, his big, graceful body looking absurd in her office chair. I watched my Juliet as she talked to him rapidly, waving her hands around expressively and reaching over him to click through the images she had prepared. He was right of course, as he often was. She was too good a prize to let go.

*

Despite our brief but warm embrace at the office, Juliet remained cool and businesslike when we returned to her apartment. She was shut down, like she had magicked a veil between her emotions and myself; opaque and unreadable. She flitted around the room, shedding her work clothes and donning a robe, and fetching a snack from the small kitchen. If not for her bringing me a warmed bottle of Tru Blood, I could have imagined I was already invisible, vanished from her life like mist, and I it stung me more than I expected.

I waited impatiently for her to emerge from the bathroom, unable to prevent myself thinking wistfully of a different night, when I had barged into that little room and joined her in the bath, and had proceeded to take her and bend her body to my will, my lust and loneliness luring her free spirit into a trap that was now more pain than pleasure. The stirrings of life that had tugged at my still heart as my need for her grew and grew could be ruthlessly crushed this evening if I did not act, but I sensed it was already too late. My inability to open myself to her, her treatment at the hands of my peers, the brutal attack she had suffered and my boorish reaction, all that would now be added to with a last minute, clumsy plea for her to give up her life to accompany me. As if she already knew what I was going to ask her, she was steeling herself to deny me.

'Tell me what is on your mind,' I said wearily when she emerged from the bathroom, her damp hair curling around her shoulders, a pair of decidedly unsexy pyjamas obscuring her lush body. She sat on the foot of the bed cross legged, her face solemn but her brilliant eyes following me as I rose from the couch.

'I've got trouble at work, big trouble,' she said abruptly. I froze in my path towards her, watching her face grow dark with anger. 'Someone saw me at the palace the other night. I don't know who, and they talked to one of the big shot shareholders of my company. They're all a bunch of good ole boys. Republicans...so called Christians,' she said contemptuously. 'My boss told me today that they want me out, in case I sully the reputation of the firm by being a fangbanger, a vampire slut.' She laughed bitterly and shrugged. 'Not my boss's words of course, but I know what they're saying to each other down at the country club. Outside New Orleans, this state is redneck puritan central.'

I didn't know what to say. I was furious on her behalf, wanting to find those men who had called for her dismissal, find them and persuade them such a move was very unwise. I clenched my fists, torn between offering my help or offering her my escape. She would not have to worry about money if she came with me. I would care for her. She would not have to put up with the demands of hypocrites and fools, and she would not have to come home exhausted and frazzled like she had tonight. 'So you are fired?' I finally said.

'Not exactly. My boss Chad is a good guy. He went into bat for me, telling the bastards I was excellent at my job and an asset to the company.' She gave another acid laugh and looked away. 'I can resign and get a reference, or be transferred. To Las Vegas. They need someone in the office there, and Sin City is an appropriate place for someone with my dubious morals. I even get a payrise, thanks to Chad.' She curled in upon herself like a kicked puppy, her dark hair falling in an obscuring curtain around her face. Raw grief leaked through the bond, but her determination was stronger. 'I'm going to take their offer. I have a week to pack up and move.'

Here it was, my chance to disentangle myself on her terms, an unexpected gift, but I did not want it. The panic that I always suffered at the thought of losing her gnawed at my insides like a host of rats. I shifted on my feet, the contentment and happiness I had felt in her company too precious to cast aside. If we had more time together, without any of the outside forces that had worked against us, maybe I could find the peace I so desperately sought. Maybe I could open myself to her completely, and love her as she deserved to be loved.

'You do not have to take their offer, Juliet,' I said huskily. 'You are mine, you can stay with me. I will provide for you, I will take you with me wherever I go.' I paused, wishing she would turn so I could look into her eyes and compel her, make her consider, not with glamour but with all I had meant to her over the past weeks. But her face remained averted, her posture highly defensive. 'I am also being sent away by the Queen, to a post in Washington. Tonight I intended to ask you to come with me.'

There was a long, awful silence. I reached through the bond to feel for her mind, but all I felt was anguish and regret, a poison that leached into me, dousing the flame of hope that had burned briefly. 'You will not come,' I said dully. It wasn't a question, it was the answer.

The still figure on the bed gave a shuddering breath, fighting back tears. 'All my life I have tried to be independent. To stand on my own two feet...not let people hurt me...never, ever give up my power to anyone, especially not a man,' she said in a bleak voice. 'I've never really been in love, until now. I've never been so utterly powerless, until now. I can't follow you around forever, Bill, hoping you will be the man I want you to be, and hoping I don't get killed in the meantime by one of your friends. You're not a man, and I am a fucking fool. It is not fair on you, and not fair on me.' She turned her face towards me and brushed her hair away, her pain filled eyes sheened by tears. 'If you loved me, maybe I might have said different. But you don't. It's time for me to say goodbye, before I end up going mad.'

I absorbed the acid of her rejection as she jerked her eyes away, swiping at them furiously. Eloquence deserted me once again. The practical side of me agreed with her, though it struggled in a death match with my raging impulses, the base desire to leap upon her and force her to obey me like a good human should. The silence dragged, broken by her heaving breaths. I did not move, but eventually I roused myself with a shudder and a determined clench of my jaw, unable to stand the pain any longer, logic winning out over the inhuman need to take and dominate.

I turned to go. 'I see no need to linger,' I said, my voice as cold as a Northern winter. 'I will take my leave. I release you from our bond, go as you will...' I halted and swallowed the jagged lump of ice in my throat. 'I wish you good fortune.'

There was an angry stirring of movement behind me; bare feet hitting the floor and a small, fragile body bristling, razor sharp eyes boring into my rigid back. Then there was a desperate, heartrending sob, and a torrent of withering words. 'Oh my God...the fact you can say goodbye and walk out like that just proves me goddamn right! You fucking cold bastard. God, I wish I'd never met you!'

It was too much. My temper snapped; too many days of holding it back wearing me down, the agony unendurable. I whirled around and flew across the room, throwing myself upon her, sending her crashing backwards across the bed. Her shriek of surprise quickly turned into an enraged struggle, thrashing and scratching and punching, my blood in her giving her frail body additional strength. Once again she slapped me hard across the face, and I bared my fangs at her. As brave as a lion she stared me down, bucking against the cage of my thighs on either side of her. I was instantly hard, and I felt no self disgust, surrendering to the twisted impulse to take her, fuck her and drain her.

Words reappeared in my frenzied mind, and I caught her flailing hands and held her still, the glittering fury and fear in her emerald eyes belied by the rising scent from under her rumpled nightclothes, the siren call of her blood in her veins. She could not hide from me. 'You have given me your blood and your body,' I said fiercely. 'You have invited me into your home and given me your trust and your love. And in exchange I have given you nothing except trouble and anguish.'

She blinked back her tears and went to speak, but I would not let her. 'You are right to refuse me. I should walk out of here and leave you in peace. And yet I cannot.' I lowered my head, licking the droplets from her cheeks, savouring their sweet taste. She had gone limp, the air heaving from her lungs as if she had been running for miles. I kissed the hammering pulse on her throat, hearing a tiny moan of response, and lowered my voice to a sibilant hiss. 'I still want to fuck you and mark you and feed from you...rub my scent all over you so no man will dare come near you for the rest of your short life. Because, as you say, I am not a man, I am a vampire. You should have run from me the night we met, I would have let you...do you want to run now, Juliet?'

She moaned again, louder this time, struggling anew against my weight, my relentless words, the swelling lust in her belly that filled my nose and hers. 'You fight me, you claim you don't want me, but I can smell it, I can feel it...you know you can stop this happening...' My left hand trailed down her arm to her breasts, enjoying their ripeness, the hardening of her nipples under my palm. 'Get rid of me for good,' I challenged her. 'Speak the words I taught you to make me leave, or let me take what is mine one last time.'

Her inward dilemma flitted across her face, but she was as addicted to my touch as sure as I was to hers, and the withdrawal was too terrible to face just yet. 'God damn you,' she growled. I took it as acceptance, but she continued to squeak and scrap and hurl insults as I divested her of the awful pyjamas, tearing them in my haste to get at her, the flowered cotton reduced to rags around her naked, flailing limbs. My smirk was a real one, a taunt that made her lovely eyes snap with annoyance. Sitting firmly on her legs I began to undress swiftly, her gaze fixed on the white hands parting my shirt, unhooking my belt. Deceptively still, she exploded into fresh defiance as I drew down my zipper, sliding sideways with a rich curse, her body fishtailing violently, her hands clutching at the edge of the mattress.

It was suddenly a dark game, and I actually chuckled as I grabbed her shoulders and hauled her back under me easily. 'Where are you going?' I teased her, rising up to straddle her chest. My flapping belt inspired me; I needed to put my hands to uses other than restraining her. I whipped the length of leather from the loops and twisted it around her wrists, securing it to one of the iron bars of the headboard faster than she could see. Bound, she quieted, her expression a goading blend of excitement and frustration. She looked so delicious, her body straining against the belt, her breasts bouncing, her thighs bent, exposing her glistening sex to me. The blinding ache in my loins lured my hand to close tightly around my cock, stroking myself for some relief. My other hand palmed her slick flesh, then formed into a threatening fist, the knuckles rubbing against her nub, teasing it out into the open.

She whimpered and arched her hips from the bed, watching the movement of my fingers over my length. She was tied up as tight as her wrists, craving release. The scent of her arousal was filling my senses, making me forget all that had been said. 'Please...' she breathed as my fingers traced the shape of her petals and dabbled just inside, her nectar coating them. She jerked and pleaded again, I licked the digits clean and quieted her with my growl of pleasure, her cheeks flushing crimson in response. I then wriggled out of my clothes, wanting to cover her completely with my chill, lifeless body. I was in a hurry, but I wanted her to feel every cold bastard inch of me as I entered her.

Bending her legs backwards as I moved, I lunged forward, found her with the head of my cock, and plunged into heaven, her sex taut and closed up with tension, and she screamed out in agonised pleasure, her muscles grabbing me and sucking me down in a sweet ripple of fire. I dipped low over her shaking frame, holding fast to her upper arms, feeling her brace her calves on my backside, and nipped at her neck and shoulders as I pounded into her, the slap of my pelvis meeting hers harsh and violent. Thousands of tiny sparks surged through my veins, forming into a sharp pain in my loins, and a burning thirst in my throat, demanding instant gratification. And she would come with me, and again and again when I pleasured her at length afterwards. This was not lovemaking, but a vicious, bruising possession.

I rolled my hips, and my woman's frantic sobs were broken by the loveliest moan. I felt her lips on my ear, so I shifted my hands under her back to hold her closer to me, the belt cutting into the flesh of her wrists, and turned to meet her kiss, my tongue dipping to stroke hers. Then I was yanking at her hair, twisting her neck to expose the vein I sought. I stiffened inside her clasp, thrusting home and home again, forcing her to cry out at a higher pitch before I punctured her soft skin, drawing deep pulls of hot blood, growling low as I erupted inside her. I was thirsty for her, so thirsty, knowing it was my last chance to feed from her. It took all my strength of will to drag myself away in the midst of release, my skin tingling with the life I had taken, my cock bathed in the pulsing warmth of her sex.

Blood dripped from my mouth as I gasped in reflex. Glazed eyes looked up at me, tears leaking from them slowly. I used my thumb to erase them, sucking it into my mouth. 'No, don't do that sweetheart,' I said roughly. 'Not yet.' I would keep her so distracted by pleasure she would not cry again, for I could not bear it. I lowered my head to her breasts, burying my face between them, nuzzling the sweat sheened hills and valleys, my hips still moving, circling, giving her small jabs, the friction of her rippling walls keeping me hard as stone.

'You're not done with me, are you?' I heard her say in a weak voice.

'No,' I murmured, lifting my head just enough so my eyes met hers over the swell of her breasts. She hissed when I drew a nipple into my mouth, my fangs scraping the sensitive peak.

'Good...that's good,' she sighed, arching into me, inviting more, happy to push cold reality aside and surrender. My mouth and hands roamed over the contours of her breasts, belly and hips, my length slipping free from her body with a twitch of protest as I slithered downwards, kneading and pinching her buttocks, dragging her thighs further apart so I could kiss the yielding flesh of them. Her pleasure grew louder, purrs and mews and emphatic movements of her hips beckoning me to thrust my tongue between her swollen folds and taste the mingling of our juices. I used both my hands to pull her apart, exposing her pink core, rumbling in my chest when I licked her with wide, slow strokes, then grazed my fangs over her clitoris.

She keened my name, wrapping her legs around my shoulders, the belt buckle clinking as she struggled again to get free. 'Oh baby...' she moaned. 'Please let me out. I want to touch you.' I crawled up her body and loosened the belt, pausing to take her lips. Her wrists were marred with red welts, and she flexed her fingers for a moment before grabbing at me with force, guiding me backwards onto my haunches. Her cheek rubbed against the hair of my chest, her mouth trailing to taste a nipple, her teeth pinching, her warm fingers tracing the muscles of my back. I rolled my head back and closed my eyes, enjoying her gentle touch, the sweep of her hair across my skin as her mouth moved downwards. Then her head was in my lap, her hands reaching for my backside to guide me upwards so I filled her throat completely.

A groan exploded from my lips, the pleasure immense, but it wasn't enough, I needed to serve her as she served me. I fell backwards and drew her over my supine form, grasping her hips and turning her so she was straddled across my face, her plump backside and dripping sex within easy access of my hands and mouth. Her cry of shock was stifled, but I felt the charge of excitement through her blood. She was as soft as butter, as sweet and liquid as honey, as wanton as a whore as she ground herself onto my lips and tongue, and the fingers that invaded the tight entrance between her cheeks.

She paused here and there to lift her head and cry out, unable to keep sucking without giving voice to her bliss, but she always returned to take me in again, the skillful movement of her mouth over me enhanced by the small, hot hand that cupped and tugged and rolled my testicles. My belly grew rigid, the muscles straining as I arched off the rumpled bed, needing to be engulfed, a hoarse shout escaping as she obliged and took me deep, her lips grasping the base of my cock for a long moment before they slid back. I pushed my thumb and forefinger inside her, stretching her as the rest of my hand plunged between her buttocks, flicking my tongue over her nub firmly, her sobs vibrating around me as she dipped to take me in again.

There was a great leap of sensation in my core, and I surged upwards, giving a helpless moan. The flesh under my mouth began to pulse, so I turned my head, burrowing my face into her thigh and sinking my fangs deep, tapping into her sweet vein. As her blood began to gush into my greedy mouth I clamped my arm down on her bottom to hold her still. She was shaking like a leaf, choked moans wracking her body as I came in her mouth in great spurts. I would never forget how delicious she tasted, how good it felt when she swallowed what I gave her, and how erotic and abandoned she was, writhing on top of me as she climaxed.

She lifted her head and called out to God, then collapsed on her side, rolling off me and lying there as if stunned, her chest rising and falling rapidly, licking her swollen lips. I roused myself from my daze and moved to curl my body around her protectively as she dozed for a few moments. I wrapped my fingers in her thick, shiny curls, nuzzled and kissed her flushed face; sheer gratitude voiced in caresses. In other circumstances she would be smiling contentedly and teasing me with sly, loving words, but now she hid from me behind heavy lids, her expression achingly sad. 'You're wrong, you know,' she said in a slow, soft voice. 'About giving me nothing. You gave me this.' She lifted a hand, blindly reaching for my face, brushing my cheek and jaw before sliding her fingers down my chest, ending by cupping my groin, which was still hard for her. 'We had so much happiness in this bed, and for a while it was more than enough.' Her eyelids flickered, a breathy sob rising from her wounded heart.

'Ssh, sweetheart, lets not speak of it, not yet,' I begged, shifting behind her so my hardness was pressed firmly against the cleft of her buttocks. 'I am still not finished with you,' I said firmly, my hand skimming over her breasts as I bent my head to silence her with another kiss. She sighed, opening her lips to me and then gasping in renewed pleasure when I bent her leg over mine and slid back into her inviting heat. There were still several hours until dawn, and I intended to fill them. There was no need to ruin this with the inevitable. When I left the apartment, it would be for the last time.

*

Like a condemned man with his last meal, I gorged myself on her, seeking every path into her body, reopening the wounds on her throat and thigh to drink in her sharp, sweet essence. She was like a wild feline, purring and growling and biting, clawing at my back, clawing at the sheets, lost in madness until she finally collapsed with exhaustion. I left her to sleep for awhile, her limbs tossing off the sheets and blankets as she wandered in a restless dream, her body rosy with exertion and marred by bruises and marks from my rough treatment. I wished I could bear the marks of her passion for me and cherish them, but my skin was smooth, cool and featureless as always, save for the scars of battle I carried from my human life. Dawn was not far away, and misery was a solid, unmoving weight in my stomach; that last meal settling like a stone.

Juliet twisted on the mattress, her dark brows creasing in distress, and she called out my name. I scooted towards her, gathering her up in my arms. 'I am still here, my darling,' I whispered into her fragrant tumble of hair. Her green eyes opened, taking a while to come into focus. 'I saw you,' she said sleepily. 'I saw you in my dream. It was weird...it was so real.'

'What did you see?' I said gently. Her red lips curled, the little smile contrasting with the dull grief that lingered in her bright irises.

'I was in a garden by a pond. My feet were in the water though it was cold outside...I could see goldfish swimming around them in the dark,' she told me. 'I could sense I wasn't alone, and then I looked up, and you were there. I was really angry at you, but then you smiled at me and put your hand over your heart, and I was happy.' She gave a little laugh. 'Some people think dreams mean something, that they're trying to tell you stuff. But I've always thought that was bullshit.' Her lids closed in a wince, the light in her face vanishing. 'You've got to go soon. I can see the sky changing.' Her jaw clenched in determination, and she climbed from my lap, lying down on the mattress, but her fingers reached for mine and squeezed them. 'I would like it to end like this. I don't want you to come back again before I go. If you do I will completely lose it. This is hurting me enough.'

She was still set on letting me go, to re-find her independence and a normal life without me, but it no longer had the power to anger or wound. My soul was numb, the weight of pain gone as I squared myself to face the final rejection I deserved. 'Are you happy to move to Las Vegas?' I asked her. 'You know I can arrange for you to keep your job here. It is of little consequence to seek out the people who wish you gone and glamour them.' I would do far more than that if it was necessary; my reluctance to kill overwhelmed by my fury at her ill treatment at the hands of vile humans who had profited from her hard work.

'No, Bill,' she said firmly. 'You can't interfere with people like that. I'm not comfortable with it.' She shot me a sharp glance. I did not understand her reluctance but I muttered a 'very well', and nodded grudgingly. 'Don't worry about me.' she said more gently. 'It's about time for me to move on anyway. With the money they're bribing me with to go away, I'll be able to save more and start my own firm, like I always wanted to,' she explained. 'And I'd rather be out of New Orleans for a while. I don't want to meet the Queen again. She looked way too interested in me. And then there's Eric. I've had enough of mean ass vampires to last a lifetime.'

She wrinkled her nose in disdain, and the expression made me smile. I reached for her cheek, cupping it delicately, She relaxed into my touch, holding out her arms with a brave smile in return. She hugged me close, drawing my head to her breast. I nestled into her like a distressed child, savouring the slow thump of her heartbeat. 'Will you try to forget me?' I could not help asking, my voice raspy and weak.

Her breath hitched, but she smothered it with a short laugh. 'I think you've made damn sure tonight that's not going to happen.' Her chest rose and fell with another sob. 'I don't want to forget any of it. Not even the bad parts.'

Encouraged, I spoke again. 'I do not want to lose you.' I looked up into her pretty face, using my blue eyes on her. 'You are mine, you should come with me.'

She visibly flinched under my gaze, tears streaming suddenly down her cheeks. 'Please don't start with that again,' she pleaded. 'Being your possession isn't enough for me. I want it all. I want to know you. I want to love you and be loved in return. You're a stranger to me, from a life I don't really understand. With thousands of secrets you don't want to share. It's cruel to ask it of me.'

Courageous as always, she faced me down, utterly vulnerable and honest. It shamed me into backing off. I let go of her and sat up, the brightening of the city outside the french doors tugging at my feet along with the finality in her voice. I turned away, sitting on the edge of the bed we had shared, staring blankly at the pile of my clothes on the rug. The numbness in my core froze over, dousing the flames of life, my passion and pathetic longing for her human softness and warmth, and the torturous glimpses of a good life that was completely closed to me.

I was vampire; a hunter, a creature of darkness who lurked in the shadows, spying, preying on the weakness of others. Who worked for a Queen he disliked and a cause he despised. Cursed by the selfish whim of another pitiless woman who had stolen him from his humanity. And now rejected by a human girl, cast out to wander this world alone as before, not hating life enough to want to die, but not happy, never happy. I would never let that vampire be tormented by another woman again.

I willed myself to pick up my clothes and depart without another longing glance at the girl on the bed, without wallowing once more in the ecstasy we had shared there. But then I felt her hand on my back, holding me still for one more moment. 'You know you can find me whenever you want to,' a sweet voice whispered. 'When you are ready.'

I could scrub her from my mind, shut off the bond, coldly ignore all the feelings she had awakened in me, but it would all be in vain. I knew the temptation inherent in those words would haunt me for a long time. Would I ever give into it? I did not know.

***


	11. Chapter 11

**_Hi there, this is a uber short chapter, jumping forwards into the future. As we don't know what is happening in the show re: Bill's motives for being in Bon Temps, I have taken the vague and unsatisfying explanation from the books and toyed with it a bit. There is one last chapter after this, and I'm done. Thanks for reading! _**

**Part 11**

_Some two years later..._

Here I was again, trapped by a she- spider in a glittering, costly web, shifting uncomfortably on a spindly, gilded chair while she pinned me down with her beautiful, spiteful eyes. Her gold beaded gown coiled around her petite form like an exotic reptile's skin, arresting but impenetrable, hard and cold, the girlish affectations of giggling and hair twirling and simpering as cosmetic as the make up on her doll's face. Once again she wanted something, a new mission was to direct my fate.

My mind drifted back to the vacation I had returned from, as I sat there and pretended to listen. A private island in the Carribean, a beach hut and solitude, the ocean and the wind and the call of birds my only companions; blessed peace from the machinations of human and vampire alike. I should have shown gratitude for being allowed a month to be alone, but I just longed to go back there and stay there for eternity.

Nearly two years in Washington had cured me of the desire to be around humans and play the human, the worst traits of greed, stupidity and prejudice spelled out in the people I was forced to associate with. I had jumped at the chance to escape the real world on vacation, and had let myself go; my hair unkempt, my clothes scruffy, my conversation minimalistic. I had not sought out humans even to feed upon, surviving on a cooler full of Tru Blood and finding the constant gnawing thirst and dissatisfaction a strange and welcome penance. The Queen had clicked her tongue and sworn in vexation on first sighting me in this bedraggled state, and sent me to the palace feeding room, where I had selected a male and fed quickly, and with little enthusiasm. Though I had fought hard to forget about Juliet after our parting two years ago and succeeded somewhat, I still could not abide the intimacy of being with a woman, and had rarely had any sexual encounters or fed from a female, though they freely offered.

In some ways it felt like a betrayal, as well as an unwelcome reminder of the fleeting happiness and lingering misery I had experienced with her. I knew she was out there somewhere, though I had blocked off the connection that would bind us until one of us died. But I never let myself think on where she was now, and how things fared for her, lest it tempt me into seeking her out. Despite her final, wistful words to me on that last night together, she had made it clear I was not enough for her. I had kept my promise to myself to respect that.

'I hear your last living relative in the charming little hick town of yours has died recently,' the Queen said suddenly, interrupting her lengthy grumblings about the American Vampire League and snapping me from my reverie. I blinked and focused upon her immediately, wondering why she had been poking around in my family history.

'A great, great grandson. He was very old and very feeble, I believe,' I said coolly. 'I am curious as to why you're interested. The property will not be worth much, and it is in Bon Temps, hardly an up and coming area for investment.' She was obsessed with acquiring property around the state, and I had no intention of standing by and letting her have my family estate now it was vacant, even if I had no plans to claim it for myself.

The Queen smiled in what she thought was a benevolent manner. 'The estate is yours, William, I certainly don't want a shitty old ruin in rednecksville. Besides, you have served me well for decades, taking jobs I know you find well below your noble standards. I am minded to reward you by letting you retire and move back home. Try out this mainstreaming bullshit I know you've been hankering after.'

I was instantly suspicious of this amazing show of kindness. A kindness that was exceedingly cruel, knowing as she did the grief I still bore over the loss of my family and home so many years ago. 'I have no interest in playing the human,' I said shortly. 'Washington has cured me of such foolishness. And Bon Temps is not my home anymore. I am a vampire, I have no home.'

'Don't be a drama queen,' she snapped, her porcelain face creasing with pique for a moment, then smoothing out again. 'Bon Temps is not DC. And it would suit you very well I think, working on that old wreck of a house, living out in the woods and making friends with the yokels, when they get used to having you around. That was the whole idea of vampires coming out of the coffin, wasn't it? At least it was for you.'

Her voice was sweet as molasses, tempting me with this pleasant fairytale of a new life. I felt instant panic at the idea of moving back to my human home, and yet through the fog of pain surrounding the prospect, I could see myself there, left alone to carry out renovations, working with my hands as I used to do as a man, amassing a library and amusing myself in other solitary ways. Not having to answer to the palace, and meeting simple people who were not driven by greed and spite. My stiff posture relaxed, and I rolled my shoulders and slumped back in the stupid, uncomfortable chair, projecting an air of indifference as I mulled it over.

It might be a balm to my spirit if I faced the ghosts of my past, rather than continuing to ignore them. I was not healing as I was now, and I knew I needed to evolve, or let myself die my final death. This truth had possessed me every night I had sat on that deserted beach and gazed at the pitiless stars.

'I will admit this does all sound very intriguing, your majesty. But what is the catch?' I said cautiously, raising my brows.

She gave an annoying, tinkly little laugh, leaning forward in her chaise. 'You're far too smart for your own good, but I always liked that,' she said patronisingly. 'There is a trifling little task for your retirement...babysitting actually. Tell me, when you were in the feeding room tonight, did you notice a pretty blonde girl?'

I frowned at the change of subject, mentally flicking through the idle humans I had seen relaxing in the large salon, where they were sent to wait in shifts every evening for our use. There had been a blonde girl among them with a sad, sweet, not particularly intelligent face, who had been sitting alone reading a lurid magazine. The only one that hadn't come to attention when I entered the room. 'The one with pigtails?'

The Queen smiled, her hard face almost gentle. 'Hadley...she's my new favourite. She's such a little sweetheart, and her taste is something to be believed. Her family is from Bon Temps and she speaks of them often, though she ditched them ages ago. She tells me she has a cousin with a special gift. Something that would be very useful to me, and a threat if one of my rivals got their hands on her.'

Baffled, I looked at her with frank interest. Humans weren't known for possessing special gifts, though some claimed they were psychics, witches or clairvoyants to make themselves more fascinating to other humans, or even exploit them for money. 'What can she do exactly?'

'Hadley claims her cousin can read minds as clear as day. Of course no one believes that, they just think she's crazy, but my human believes it sincerely. I would like this girl investigated. Locate her, follow her around, befriend her, and notify me whether this claim is true.'

She paused to roll her eyes at my darkening expression. Of course, I did not like the idea of running around after a silly chit of a girl, and possibly ensnaring her in my dangerous world. There was nothing noble about such a task, though it was much less taxing than the Queen's previous missions. 'Can you not leave the human alone? I burst out. 'She is an innocent country girl, not a fangbanger. It would be bad for her to work for you, if that is what you had in mind.'

'I wouldn't make her do anything that she won't do of her own free will. I'm fond of my Hadley, and merely wish to protect her family. What do you think would happen to that girl if another monarch found her?' She demanded, gearing up for a tirade. 'A telepath is an asset anyone in a position of power would kill for. She would not be treated well by others, and may end up being used against my interests. This way is better for her, and for me.' She lowered her harsh tone, reducing her voice to a persuasive purr, leaning further towards my frozen, sullen form. 'You are perfect for such a job, William. I remember what you were like with that little brunette minx you brought to me a couple of years ago...damn besotted. She had you wrapped around her little fingers. Now she is gone and you've been lonely ever since. I've found you another girl to distract yourself with.' I could not keep the flash of pain from showing in my face, and of course she zoned in on it ruthlessly. 'Tell me, did you kill her in the end?'

'I did not, I released her when she asked it of me,' I snarled, and she smiled maliciously and nodded. 'Bon Temps is in Area Five,' I added, quickly and desperately. 'I do not understand why you don't assign this babysitting job to your sheriff. He would do a far better job of protecting her than I could. He is older, and more ruthless. He's also handsome, the girl would probably like him well enough, if he behaved himself around her.'

'Don't pretend to be dense, William,' she said acidly. 'It would be like putting a cat in charge of a canary. Eric would eat her alive. He's the last person I would want getting his hands on such an asset. He's ever ambitious and has always disliked me.'

Bored with my prevaricating, she dropped her gaze and inspected her immaculate fingernails. I seethed inwardly, wondering if it was such a bad move, to act as a protector and friend to a human girl, and save her from a worse fate. Her secret talent was already out, thanks to her foolish cousin. I could do my best to make sure she was left unmolested, to live her normal little life with her family, and keep her away from the palace and all its beautiful depravity. This was a mission; I did not have to involve myself romantically with the girl and suffer the same agony and confusion I had with my lost Juliet. I could re-establish myself in my home town, retire from politics and spying, and babysit, as the Queen had put it.

What could possibly go wrong? Many things. I sighed heavily, the very human gesture making the Queen stop her preening and smirk in triumph. 'Are you thinking about it?' She said lightly. 'I knew you would. You can't resist a damsel in possible distress.'

I repressed the urge to pop my fangs and snarl at her smugness. 'Are you going to tell me this unfortunate, mystical girl's name?' I said sarcastically, avoiding a yes or a no.

'Sookie Stackhouse,' she said with a giggle. 'Isn't that a precious mouthful?'

There was no logical explanation for it, but the moment that odd name fell from her lips I felt something stir in my chest; an electrical charge of light and hope and warmth, wrapped up in cold, sickening dread. It lasted but a moment, and then it was gone. I batted away my disquiet at the strange reaction, rose to my feet, and bowed to the Queen formally, needing desperately to take my leave and think on everything that had been said. 'I thank you for your offer,' I said stiffly. 'I will retire for the night and consider it.'

I knew what my answer would be as soon as I left the room, and so did she. I heard her snicker of satisfaction as I closed the door behind me.


	12. Chapter 12

_**Frigging long A/N: **_

_**Hi you guys. This is a very long epilogue, and last chapter of this fiction. I really wanted to tell this part of the story from Juliet's point of view, so here she is. Enjoy, and thanks to everyone who bothers to leave me a review. Feedback brings more drama and lemons, no feedback makes writers sulk like little bitches ;) **_

_**Apologies to Sookie and Bill shippers. I love Bill to pieces, but personally, I don't think she's very good for him (sweet they are maybe, but frigging dysfunctional), so I might be doing my own thing here. If the ending seems kind of open, its because I may write a one shot sequel in the future, depending on how Season 3 grabs me. **_

_**See you next time, maybe. Thanks to Alan Ball and Charlaine Harris for letting me borrow their characters for awhile. **_

_**PS: Please support the Battle of the Fang charity grudge match over at the website I write for (under a different name), www(dot)trueblood-news(dot)com. Alexander Skarsgard and Stephen Moyer have kindly agreed to take part, the lovely minxes. The team that raises the most money gets to make the other guy wear a humiliating t shirt. Stephen is supporting Gulf Aid, which raises funds for the clean up of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster. Go Team Bill! Er, if you absolutely must support the other guy, his charity is SOS Children's Villages. Donate and be awesome.  
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**Part 12- Epilogue**

_Several months after Bill's return to Bon Temps- Juliet's point of view. _

The invitations from the palace had started as soon as I had returned to my beloved, battered New Orleans and set up my small firm. Eventually, I had run out of polite excuses not to come. I had absolutely no desire to have a disturbing trip down memory lane and return to a place where I had been brutally attacked, nor did I have any interest in attracting amorous attention. I may work for vampires, supplementing my daytime charity work with special commissions, but I didn't want to hang with them, let alone sleep with another one. I had learned my lesson about that. Sort of. And if you went to one of Queenie's shindigs as a girl on your lonesome, the other guests tended to view you as a sexy snack.

So here I was, sitting in a corner of the bar, scowling like a sulky brat, and swigging a glass of champagne for my jangling nerves. My outfit for the evening was selected to be as rude and off putting as possible; the demure silver tea dress and solid silver choker and bangles on my throat and wrist earning me a few nasty scowls, and big bellow of laughter from my kind-of friend Rasul.

Despite being a hard ass palace guard, Rasul was one of the most cheerful and approachable vampires I had ever met. He was hovering in my vicinity right now, looking hopeful, with only half an eye to his crowd control duties. He had been bugging me to go on a date with him since he had delivered the first of the Queen's invitations weeks ago, but I kept turning him down. The few men who had battled their way through my 'touch me not' vibe over the last couple of years had gotten the same response.

My gaze flicked over him briefly as I warily scanned the room for the dozenth time. He was very handsome with that lithe body, curly dark hair and golden skin, standing out in the mob of pasty white undead, big hairy werewolf types, and the dumbass humans whoring themselves for sex and business, or both. I flicked my eyes away when he flashed a roguish smile in my direction, and fidgeted on the plush couch. I prayed the Queen would hurry up and call me in for the obligatory curtsy and grovel, so I could get the hell out of here. I had a bunch of hurricane-ruined houses to inspect tomorrow on the bad side of town, and I wanted all my wits about me for that.

The hubbub of people's drunken chatter faded as I thought about my latest project; designing low-cost housing for a street that had been completely wiped out by Katrina, and had sat empty and derelict for over a year. The tragedy of my adopted city had sent me hurrying back from Las Vegas to offer my services as an architect for the clean up, overcoming my reluctance to return to the scene of my first, last and only grande romance. Working for charities and poor folks with crappy insurance cover didn't pay much, so I had used my old connections to start doing work for vampires; designing light proof, sumptuous homes and interiors for bars, as I had done once for Eric. I found the work interesting and very well paid, though courting that type of client held some risks. Like invitations to boring yet potentially dangerous parties.

I hadn't seen Eric tonight, but he was probably around somewhere. Whatever the Queen was celebrating was obviously important and deserving of a full roll call of local vamps, as the place was packed, making it easier for me to stay out of view. I was mildly curious about seeing the big, blonde badass, from a safe distance of course, as we'd only exchanged a couple of emails about my business idea since I had returned. I was trying hard not to think of the _other_ vampire in my past, though being in the palace brought the pain of him back to gnaw at my mind like a migraine. I refused to even say his name in my thoughts, though I knew with every pass of my eyes around the bar I was hunting for him, the dark one, the un-named one.

Giving myself a mental shake up, I put my empty glass down on the parquet floor and slid my stocking clad feet into silver pumps, which were antique and adorable, but designed for daintier feet than mine, and winced as I went to stand up, getting ready to slip to the bar for another drink. But Rasul swept down upon me with his gleaming white smile, sitting down on the couch and blocking my path with a hand on my arm. I sighed to myself.

'Ahh, my deadly silver princess. You look terribly bored and cross,' he said archly, his smooth, cultured voice showing no hint of his Egyptian origins. 'What do you say we depart this place, and go somewhere quiet where you can take off that offensive colour and finally show me what lies beneath?'

He gave a theatrical leer, and I burst into giggles, more amused than annoyed. 'You never give up, do you?' I said, unable to resist a toss of my head and tiny, flirtatious look. 'I don't know why you don't glamour me so you can finally satisfy your curiosity. I'm just going to keep saying no.'

'What would be the fun in that?' He shrugged, then leaned in closer, his chocolate brown eyes glittering and intent. 'You'll give in eventually. I know there's hot blood bubbling in those elegant veins of yours. You'll forget about Bill Compton and move on. And here I am. Conveniently.'

I flinched away from the impatient words, my humour dying fast, and his eyes softened slightly. He wasn't a bad guy, despite being the undead and working for a psycho bitch, I shouldn't get angry at him. 'Love is such a useless emotion, I don't know why you humans are so obsessed with it,' he said bluntly. 'Look at you, still pining. A woman as delectable as you shouldn't be alone.'

'I am not pining,' I snapped, sitting up straight and getting ready to flee. His hand fell from my arm, and thank God, he backed off. 'I'm just not interested in anyone. It's nothing personal.' I jumped up, swinging my purse over my shoulder, my face closed up tightly against his frustrated expression. 'I can't deal with this shit tonight, Rasul. I need a drink. Come get me when the Queen wants me, then I'm going home.'

I hobbled away without listening to his apology, wondering idly what was up. I had told him never to mention Bill to me and he had respected that, until now. My bad mood even worse, I threaded my way through the crowd, seeking the oblivion of alcohol. Once upon a time, I had been a hot blooded woman who spent every night in my lover's arms, and when I had broken up with him, my veins had turned to ash. It was like my body knew no man I met would satisfy me, and had the power to both soothe me and excite me. Aside from one disastrous attempt in Vegas when I was rotten drunk and had met a tall, dark, quiet man who reminded me a little of Bill, I was a nun.

I threw myself into work, collapsing in exhaustion every night. For the first six months I often cried myself to sleep, but then numbness took over and I won the battle with my aching heart, my churning emotions, the empty spot inside of me ignored. He still invaded my dreams sometimes, the dark man, sending me bolting awake drenched in sweat, my right hand slick from finding its way between my thighs. It was pathetic, all of it, mooning over a lost lover like some Victorian spinster, when he had never loved me. Over and over I told myself I hated Bill, that it was his blood making me feel this way, but I was lying to myself, tricking my brain into shutting him out.

Once I started thinking about him, I could not stop, my eyes glazing over and the bar disappearing as I thought of all the good things, conveniently forgetting the bad. The feline grace and strength of his body. His beautiful hands. The way he always listened to me so intently, absorbing the details of my life and thoughts, and never said anything unless it was worth saying. The rare smiles, the sudden whip cracks of dry humour than made me laugh in sheer delight. I ordered a glass of wine and was half-way through drinking it before I noticed; my skin flushing and prickling as I remembered all that incredible control he had over himself, so calm and cool and mysterious on the surface, only revealing what was inside in bed. The animal that took my body and fed on my blood, and the melancholy, eager, good hearted, very human man that showed me glimpses of tenderness afterwards.

Absentminded, horny and grieving anew, I was not looking where I was going, and walked straight into a very wide chest, the red wine leaping from its glass and splashing on the floor, but fortunately not on the snowy white dress shirt that was up against my nose. 'Oh my God, I'm so sorry!' I gasped, leaping away from the big hands that had reached to steady me. A very familiar snicker made my stomach lurch, and my polite apology was ruined by a rich curse. That ridiculously handsome face, that shit eating smirk...I collected myself, lifting my head high and smiling back reluctantly. 'I like the new hair, Eric.' I said pertly. 'The rest of you is just the same- annoying as hell.'

He broke into a laugh, his golden hair no longer swaying around as he shook his head. He looked much younger with it cropped close to his skull, and less like an Eighties throwback. 'I was hoping I would bump into you tonight. And you're just as rude as I remember. Good to see,' he said, his bright blue eyes flicking over me boldly. 'You look positively dangerous. Why didn't you just write 'fuck off' on your forehead to complete the ensemble?'

I snorted, taking a swig of wine to stifle my giggles. 'You got me. I so don't want to be here. Unfortunately I couldn't keep saying no. The Queen has thrown some work my way lately.' I felt cold fingers on my upper arm, and I let him draw me out of the crowd to the edge of the gilded room, looming over me enormously. Even in my heels he was a good foot taller. I craned my neck to listen to him murmur in my ear.

'You never answered my emails after you hit me up about getting your name bandied about in the community,' he chided me. 'I admit, I'm curious as to what you've been up to. Did you find a nice human and get married? A cute little house on the Gulf Coast, and a SUV? Tiny humans?'

'No to all of those,' I said, smiling at his sarcasm but not willing to elaborate. 'I'm your typical cold hearted career woman.'

His eyes gleamed with familiar mischief. 'Did Compton break your heart, then? He's quite skilled at that, so I have observed. Don't you want to know where he is? I could tell you all.'

'No thanks,' I bit back. 'And don't patronise me. My heart isn't broken, I just can't be bothered with male bullshit. There IS a difference.' My pulse stared to skip about erratically, and I drained my glass dry. Of course Eric would know where Bill was. It took all my willpower not to open my mouth and ask for the gory details. 'What about you?' I said hurriedly. 'Death treating you good?'

He smiled broadly, and there was a gloating, self satisfied look to his eyes that was instantly irritating. 'The bar is doing very well, and I have acquired a girlfriend of sorts. ' He gave me an appreciative look, his gaze lingering on my throat and breasts, not at all put off by the silver. 'She is as strident and willful as you, but blonde. I always did prefer blondes.'

I didn't bridle as he was obviously hoping. My mind was elsewhere, wishing him gone and replaced with the vampire from my past I actually wanted to talk to. Wanted to touch. Wanted to smile at me and tell me he needed me at last. Any moment now I was going to burst into tears, so I sighed in relief when I saw a woman making her way towards us, a welcome diversion. The aforementioned blonde, with a perfect figure, her pretty, winsome face marred by a nasty frown, which was directed at me.

She was human and young, her ruffled white dress contrasting with her tanned skin. I recoiled from her in surprise when she marched up to me and got in my face, her doe brown eyes snapping with confused anger. She ignored Eric as he reached out to pull her into his side. 'Ah, Sookie,' he began, but she interrupted his smooth voice.

'How do you know Bill Compton?' She demanded of me rudely. Baffled, I unwisely looked to Eric for help, but he was sniggering to himself.

'Oh, this is going to be entertaining,' he drawled.

'Excuse ME?' I said to the woman bitchily, my posture stiffening. We were about the same height, and I met her eyeball to eyeball.

'I could hear you from across the room, thinking about him.' she said icily, her accent placing her as a local; all twangy and country. 'How do you know him, and when?'

'That's none of your fucking business, I think,' I shot back. 'How do _you_ know him?' I knew it was totally hypocritical as I said it, but the woman was acting like a territorial dog, as if I'd sashayed all over her patch, and it pissed me off as much as it drove me crazy with curiosity. And how the hell did she know what I was thinking?

She fingered the thin gold chain hanging at her throat, pulling the end free from inside her dress. A large diamond ring hung from it. I heard a low growl to my left, and my eyes left Sookie for a second. Eric was glowering, no longer enjoying himself so much. Good. 'He was my fiance.' she said huffily.

Fresh cracks splintered across my heart, and my shock and hurt squirmed like a nauseous soup in my stomach. But I stayed calm, my words coming out steady and ice cold. 'Well, Bill was my lover, some time ago.' I inclined my head in Eric's direction. 'You must be nuts if you left him for this arrogant bastard. Going by how thrilled you are to meet me, I think you kind of know that.' I put my glass down on a chair, and swept my gaze over the girl in what I hoped was a haughty fashion. I was dying inside, the shakes starting to travel over my skin. 'I'd say it was nice to meet you, but that would be a lie.'

I turned on my heel and left them to it, hurrying for the nearest hiding place so I could get it together fast, hating them both, and hating myself for wanting to cry.

* * *

It was a chilly spring evening, so the elegant expanse of terraced water gardens at the rear of the palace was mercifully empty. The stone bench I flung myself down on overlooked a fishpond, and overgrown koi carp and bright goldfish swam around in the dark water hopefully, looking for handouts. I had the crazy urge to strip off my shoes and stockings, and skim my toes over the top of the water to see if they would nibble at me; a distraction from my boiling thoughts, the cannonball lodged in my guts, weighing me down with grief and regret.

Though I suffered the poison of jealousy, the inevitable comparisons between the pretty young blonde and myself, I was also realising what a fool I had been three years ago. So chickenshit and defensive and impatient, running at the first signs of trouble to preserve my independence, my sense of self, and my precious human hide. Those things were important, but had they made me happy? The girl Sookie was braver than me, more stubborn, and more willing to give all of herself, and Bill had obviously loved her, enough to want to marry her. It hurt, oh God, it hurt so bad to know it had not been me that had brought that forth.

I hunched over myself, biting back angry tears, rubbing at my arms absently for warmth. To hell with the Queen's audience, I was in no state to spar with her, I needed to get my ass home, but I was welded to the spot, fighting for control, struggling to shove back all the awful things that had spilled from the locked box in my mind labelled Bill.

I breathed deep and slow, in and out, wishing on the stars for calm, the sharp night air whistling through my senses, the cold wind and newly opened spring flowers unchanging and soothing, until I caught a new scent that itched at my nose, like woodsmoke and spice and magic. The fight or flight instinct dumped a load of adrenaline into my veins, and I started to shake. With perfect inevitability, I heard _that_ voice, like dark, melted chocolate poured over ice cream. An unhinged laugh nearly escaped my lips at the odd analogy, but I ground my teeth together.

'Hello, Juliet. It has been too long...please, may I sit with you awhile?'

The voice was hesitant and sad. The instinct to rear up and start shrieking at him died in an erratic heartbeat. 'Sure, go ahead,' I said limply. A noiseless movement, and a body slipped in beside me. I could feel the burn of his eyes travelling across my profile, but I did not look up, keeping my gaze somewhere in the vicinity of his lap. Dark blue jeans hugged his strong thighs, and battered boots were on his feet. An echo of the old familiar lust pinged around in my insides. 'You're not dressed for dancing and schmoozing,' I said, my voice admirably casual, though my trembling must have been obvious to him.

'I am no longer in the Queen's employ, so I am not obliged to attend her wretched functions,' he explained. 'I was making Sophie Anne a courtesy call, since I desired a trip to New Orleans for some diversion. I have spent too damn long sitting around the house thinking lately.'

I felt stupidly hopeful for a second, liking very much he was no longer working for the Queen, and this reunion would be a lot less humiliating if he hadn't come to find me in the garden because of Sookie and Eric. 'Who told you I was here?' I said cautiously.

'Rasul came and found me, and told me you were here, rather grudgingly I might add. But it was good timing, since I have been meaning to seek you out. I am so glad to see you, Juliet, more than you can ever know, my-'

'I met your ex tonight,' I spat, cutting off the flow of sweetness, my temper flaring now the shock was wearing off. 'She was really pretty. And pissed off. Apparently she read my mind. Damn useful trick that, no wonder vampires are tripping over themselves to date her, and even marry her.'

There was a pained silence, long and bitter. Though the bond of blood had faded between us, I sensed his misery. The weight of it was heavier than mine, a life's burden. I still didn't look up, my eyes were on his pale, graceful hands as they dug into his thighs, formed into claws, then relaxed, as if the burden had been suddenly dropped.

'I am sorry that she confronted you, and that you found out in such a way,' Bill said quietly. 'I could feel your anger and hurt clear across the gardens, and I wondered whether I should continue. But I wanted to see you again...I needed to.'

Cool fingers boldly entwined with mine, my limp hand drawn up to his chest and held there. Where his heart was, there was only silence, his body chill through the thin cotton of his blue shirt. A flash of confused de ja vu took over my mind, and I gasped and looked up finally. Agony, desperation and a tiny spark of hope were in the depths of his blue eyes. Lines of care were etched on his face, and his luminous skin was tinged with grey, as if he was starving.

A tremendous ache seized my chest, stopping my heart, and I felt it again, everything I had suffered three years ago; fascination, dark desire, frustration, the need to reach out, the compulsion to draw him back into my life, and love, that illogical human emotion. 'You look tired,' I whispered. 'Dead tired.'

'You look utterly beautiful,' he countered, a ghost of smile on his perfect lips. 'Though I am not very fond of that colour.' The flash of humour was brief, and his strong face fell still. He looked me over silently, intently, drinking me in, like I was prey, or a lifeline.

'What happened?' I asked gently, the miasma of regret wrapped around him too thick to ignore. He flinched, his fine eyes skittering away from my face, but then he swallowed and looked at me again bravely.

'I believed she was my salvation, my miracle, so I loved her and tried to keep her bound to my side. But I was mistaken, and I have paid for it. In the end, the only person who can save you is yourself,' he said haltingly, his expression thoughtful. 'I will tell you everything, if you want to hear it. I hope you will bear my presence afterwards. It is a long story, and hard for me to impart. But I would be honest with you, Juliet, as you always wanted from me.'

I was stunned into silence; my pride and affront leaking from the chinks in my armour. I had let him sit and talk with me because I loved him once, hell, I loved him still, but I was supposed to be mad, wasn't I? Not melting into a puddle, my eyes dewy with tears, my hand not moving from the broad expanse of his chest. God help me, I wanted to cradle his head on my breasts, to soothe him with words of forgiveness and acceptance. I wanted my fingers twined in his dark hair, my lips on his, his hard length buried in my heat, and my blood in his mouth.

A blush stained my cheeks, and the shrill voice in my head telling me to gather my dignity and get the hell out of there was choked off. My free hand rose to the nape of my neck, and I flicked the catch holding my silver choker closed. The cold metal slithered to the ground, the bangles on my wrist followed. His darkened eyes followed every small movement, hooded and hungry. 'Why do you offer yourself to me?' He said roughly. 'How can you love me still?'

'I've never had a good answer for that,' I replied, suddenly afraid he would reject me. But the uncertain look on his face cleared, and he drew me forwards before I could blink.

His body was cold, and as hard as marble, but answering heat bloomed in my core and prickled on my skin. My legs wrapped around his waist, my hair tumbled from its pins when his fingers tugged at its messy crown. He sniffed at it, a long, thirsty intake of air, dipped his head to nuzzle the swell of my breasts, ran his nose up the vein in my neck, re-acquainting himself with my scent. Completely animal like; he growled softly in his throat, his limbs coiled tightly under my soft weight as if readying to pounce.

I whimpered and hid my face in his shoulder, my left hand toying with the thick hair at the base of his skull. A cool tongue swept upwards over my pulse, but when I braced myself Bill groaned and pulled back. I raised my head and looked at him in hazy confusion. 'Juliet, I am very hungry,' he said huskily. 'I haven't fed in a long time. And the scent of you, the knowledge that I can taste you again, is testing my control. I might hurt you, and I will no doubt take too much.' His tongue darted out across his lower lip unconsciously, and his voice thickened even more, flowing like treacle. 'And once I take you in me, you will be mine once more. The bond will reopen. I will want you with me, to possess you, and I will want to kill anyone that looks at you or touches you. You will feel me in your head and your heart, and I you.'

He was giving me the chance to back out, showing me real honesty, but it was done in such a such a seductive, vampire-like fashion it merely served to make my arousal soar up into the heavens. I wanted him, and to hell with the consequences, the bad things that would come with the good, my body had craved his for three long years. 'I don't care,' I said simply, my mouth curling in a small smile. 'Come get me.'

His long fingers stroked my cheek before he took my face in his hands, the delicacy of the gesture at odds with his warnings, and the fierce glow in his eyes. When he kissed me, it was like falling into a deep well, cool and dark, his lips parting slowly to nip at my lower lip, the stroke of his tongue over the sensitive spot just inside causing me to murmur, then moan, my breasts pressing flat against his chest as I twined myself around him like a vine.

It was not very long until I felt the tiniest of growls, his hands sliding down my back to sink into my hips, drawing me closer in. He broke away from my warm mouth with a gasp, the click of his fangs sliding into place making my blood surge. It was my turn to hold his face between my palms, meeting his gaze boldly, absorbing his rough beauty, the threat of his hunger. I would give all that I had to bring the glow of life back to his skin, to see his face at peace. I forgot myself, and wanted to give and give, trusting that I would receive what I needed in return, which was everything.

I sensed his deft fingers plucking at the buttons at my back, then his mouth was on my throat, latching on to nibble and suck mouthfuls of tingling skin, his body held rigid under mine, the urge to feed held in check as he sniffed and tasted and almost purred. The loose satin of my dress slipped from my shoulders, the fangs that scraped down the curve of one breast making short work of the thin strip of lace holding my best bra together in front. One snick and the garment fell to ruin, and the noise I made was halfway between delight and outrage.

The cool night air drew my bare breasts up tight and goosefleshed, the nipples hard and pointed. And Bill was cold, so cold, his hands and mouth and body, but not his eyes, they were hot as they skimmed over my nakedness. I thought I looked like a plucked chicken, but he growled again, deeper and louder. I wriggled on his lap, the juncture of my thighs brushing against something thick, long and deliciously familiar. Welcome heat burst somewhere in my lower belly, and I felt the answering gush of wetness. His nose immediately twitched. 'I cannot have you being cold, sweetheart,' he rumbled, ever chivalrous. 'Even if I am desperate to be inside you.'

The dress was smoothed back over my shoulders, and then we were moving, my body held against his chest as easy as a child's as he shifted to a dizzying speed. Once I had gotten used to it, I loved it when he moved vampire-style. I squealed like a little girl and started to laugh, the happy sound following us into the palace, across a blurry lobby scattered with guests, and up a set of stairs; joy and triumph bursting like champagne bubbles in my throat. I couldn't give a shit that people saw us and drew the right conclusions, and that I was back in the hated palace, I wanted a room with a lockable door. Right now.

I had a vague impression of a quiet corridor, several closed doors, and then we were inside a room that looked like an old fashioned whore's boudoir, all red velvet drapes, gilded mirrors and dark, carved wood. The door was slammed behind us and bolted, and I was tossed under the swathed bed canopy, bouncing on the mattress. My vintage shoes had fallen off somewhere and my purse was gone. I sat up and brushed curls out of my face, finding Bill poised at the end of the bed. His stillness, the way he held his body as if coiling to attack, combined with his fangs, was the sexiest thing I had ever seen. I sighed happily and drew my dress over my head, shrugging off the remnants of my bra in the process, a total shameless hussy. Then he was crawling up the mattress, slow and sinuous, his hands gliding up my thighs, over my hips, my belly, pressing me down into the slippery, satin coverlet.

My eyes fluttered closed, the druglike haze of my arousal banishing all lingering misgivings from my mind. His hands continued to map me out, and I reached up blindly to take his mouth aggressively, my fingers playing with his sideburns as I guided him down to me. Cool and spicy and dizzying, he teased me with his kisses before backing away, lowering his head to my breasts. 'You are too thin,' he chided, shooting me a sly look as he flicked his tongue over my left nipple. 'I must fatten you up.'

'You say the nicest things, you old smoothie,' I gasped, arching off the bed as he drew the chilly peak into his mouth. I felt his his dark chuckle against my flesh.

'You make me smile, you always did,' he whispered, resting his cheek on my breast so he could look me in the eye. Before I could get weepy at what I saw in those dark blue depths, he was gone again, bent on making me crazy. I moaned and struggled against the weight of pleasure, my long neglected body twitching and undulating beneath his hands, his mouth, and the scratch of his fangs against my lower stomach. When his fingers slipped under the lace of my panties and found my core, easing inside to test my wetness, filling me up, I sat up and cried out desperately, lifting my hips to take the penetration. There was a ripple of shifting tension under his shirt, and he dived suddenly between my thighs, spreading them wide and baring his teeth. My underwear was shredded to rags, and in a split second his mouth was on my flesh; suckling, nipping, his tongue sweeping firmly over my swollen clit.

I couldn't help it; I came almost immediately, shrieking in surprise and sheer delight, the ripples of climax radiating out to my fingers and toes and forming behind my eyelids as a burst of light and colour. I felt open, exposed, my body splayed across the bed, every pore on my skin gasping and thirsty. I waited for him to turn and feed from my thigh, but he didn't. He kept his face buried in my wetness, groaning and lapping at my juices as he felt me come for him.

I groaned his name, cried out to God, stupidly and inadequately; I had no words to explain how good I felt at this moment, but he knew. He looked up, licking me from his lips and teeth slowly, his lazy, hooded eyes adding to the wonderfully sinful gesture. 'I carried the taste of you in my mouth for a long time after we parted,' he said thickly. 'It near drove me mad.'

I wanted to reach for him, tear his clothes off and have my hot hands all over his beautiful, hard flesh, but he had rendered me helpless. I could only watch as he rose up and stripped off, a blur of graceful movement. I struggled to sit up when he knelt before me, my face and chest so flushed from my orgasm I felt the glow. Damn, he was everything I remembered, unchanging despite the sadness I had seen carved on his face; the sleek lines of his torso, the strength of the muscles in his shoulders, his cock solid and huge, standing proud against his stomach. I reached out to wrap my fingers around his thickness and bent my head to take him in my mouth, but he stopped me, his hand snatching at my arm hard enough to bruise, bringing me across his lap.

With that pinching hand on my hip, and the other palm flat on my belly, he lowered me onto his erection, the parting of my flesh and the familiar burst of cramping pain as he filled me causing my toes to curl, and my nails to claw at his back. I shrieked as a white hot bolt of sensation ripped through my insides, my blood fizzing and rushing to the surface of my skin. My hair swung across his face as I hid myself in the curve of his shoulder, biting at the solid muscle in reflex as I felt the tip of his cock hit my limit. It was so intense I could barely stand it, I was utterly shocked by it, the flood of pleasure seizing and suffocating me.

A deep, sibilant hiss sounded against my ear, and I dared to look up. My long lost, ardent, hopeful lover had disappeared, wiped out by the inner monster, the one he hated and suppressed, and the one who both frightened and thrilled me. His lips were drawn back, his face contorted, his fangs as long as I had ever seen them, his eyes dilated black. My body froze and clenched around him like a vice, and I tilted my head and offered my vein, knowing he could kill me, but trusting he would not.

The force of his bite stole the remaining breath from my lungs; a great whoosh of pain, but when he released and closed his lips around the wound with a grateful moan, the strange pleasure of his feeding began to rush through my core. I was held close in the circle of his his arms, rolling my hips slightly with each hungry pull of his mouth. It seemed natural to cup my hand at the base of his skull, nursing him as he drank, though I made helpless little cries, like cornered prey. I could feel his skin begin to warm where his chest was molded against my breasts, I could sense his pleasure as clearly as I could hear it in his sweet and eager grunts and groans. He began to move in me, the tight hold of my inner walls on his rock hard length causing a friction so exquisite it was agony.

I was reaching the limit of what I had to give, my spilt blood trickling between our fused bodies, my loins dissolving into liquid fire as he arched his hips relentlessly. My eyes rolled, and giddy spots danced in my vision. Then he suddenly freed me, letting me fall backwards onto the bed, and followed. I cried out weakly as he slammed home with a snarl, my hands scrabbling for something, anything to brace myself against, even as I bent my legs backwards to take the assault. I snatched at the bedpost behind my head, my body bowing upwards, calves resting on his shoulders. We were acting as if three years of bad history had not passed, and it had only been yesterday since he had taken me so forcefully, each remembering exactly what the other needed.

The grey cast to his face was gone, the shadows in his eyes banished. I tasted the hot iron of my blood and the sweet-salt of my juices when he bent to kiss me roughly, his mouth absorbing my frantic sobs. On the brink of utter madness, the slick, deep pounding of his cock within my bruised and churned body sending me off the edge, I wrapped my legs around his flanks and brought him down, my hands letting go of the bed, holding him to me. Feral joy, possession, anger and hurt made me rake my nails down his back uselessly, bite his lower lip hard enough to cause a drop of his blood to fall on my tongue.

He thought he was reclaiming me, but as I came, the pulse of my body sucking him into the dark, comforting womb of climax, I knew I was taking him as mine, and that I would fight anyone to keep him, even if I had to fight against myself.

* * *

I didn't remember much of the trip to the Silent Shore Hotel, but I was grateful to find my lost purse and the Blackberry inside it when I woke the next morning, long enough to call my assistant and reschedule the day's appointments. I then collapsed and slept right through the day next to my lifeless vampire, exhausted after a very long and fraught night, full of boiling emotions and more words than I had ever heard Bill utter in the whole time we were lovers. Not to mention I was quite worn out from the very spectacular sex.

I had woken at five o'clock with a grumbling stomach, and had dragged myself up in search of room service, wrapping myself in one of the ugly grey hotel robes and laying a kiss on my lover's cold, still, yet contented face. I was feeling very contented myself, though disquiet lurked beneath the surface of my tired and happy thoughts, ready to spring out when real life intruded once again. Could I make this work through my stubbornness, the determination to fix the gaping void in myself that had formed when I had let Bill go? Under the awful pressure of another woman still haunting him, and oh, the neglected quasi-daughter I had found out about last night?

Feeling the pinch of a headache start to form in my temples, I shut myself in the sitting room and ordered a massive late breakfast and a pot of coffee, eating ravenously and mainlining caffeine until I felt replete and lazy all over again, focusing on the pleasant ache in my lower stomach and between my thighs, and the bubbles of joy and hope that welled up as I remembered the pleasure of last night, the sweet words that came with the bitter. The scent of Bill was all over me, in my tangled hair, on my skin, rich and thick and dominant. I sighed and stretched languorously on the couch, breathing him in, my eyes fluttering closed.

The second knock on the door took me by surprise, as I was not expecting the waiter to return for the trolley. I stalked to the door, and thinking it too early for random vampire visitors, I threw it open without caution. I stiffened, swallowing a stream of curses. Sookie was standing there, all cutesy in a yellow gingham dress, looking as if butter wouldn't melt in her mouth, whereas I looked like the proverbial well chewed slattern.

'I don't need to tell you Bill is still resting,' I said icily, in no mood for fake politeness. It was downright bizarrere that I now knew everything about this girl, and she didn't know me at all. I felt I knew her well enough to start yelling at her for what she had done to my man, as if we were guests on a trashy talk show. Maybe do some hair pulling as well.

Sookie jerked her chin up, her small hands clutching at the skirt of her dress. 'I ain't here to see Bill. I am here to see you,' she said boldly. 'I needed to apologise for last night, and uh, talk to you.' There was an awkward silence, and then obviously and annoyingly listening to my thoughts, she added- 'I saw you and Bill together at the palace...I saw him carry you upstairs, I heard you laugh...' She paused and swallowed, naked jealousy on her face, I felt even more confused. 'He never told me about you, not once. I'm sorry if this seems weird, but I wanted to find out some-'

'It is weird,' I interrupted, softening slightly, taking pity on her flaming cheeks, her pain filled eyes. 'I'm kind of curious about you too, and maybe I understand why you were mad when you read my mind.' I sighed heavily and stepped to one side. 'Come on in, but lets make this quick. I'd rather Bill didn't hear us talking. Not to mention this is the most goddamn awkward situation I've been in since um, last night?'

The blonde girl gave a nervous laugh and followed me inside the sitting room, and we sat stiffly on opposite ends of the couch, like a pair of strange cats, with our ears back and fur up. Her big Bambi eyes closed, and her pretty face flinched as if she was fighting with something. My thoughts must be pretty loud, even though all I heard in my head was an angry buzzing. 'Yeah, I know everything,' I second guessed rudely. 'I got to tell you, it's pretty hard reuniting with your ex lover, who was never one for talking, and have him bare his soul over another woman for most of the evening.'

I dropped my eyes to my lap, taking a deep breath. No matter how raw and cornered I felt at the moment, I had to be fair. I suspected she was a brave one, but it took real balls, and a complete lack of propriety, to come in see me in these circumstances. 'You've apologised to me, so what do you want to know?' I sighed again, thinking longingly of a nice hot bath, a newly awake and eager lover, and no Sookie in sight. It was a lapse into spite, as she immediately winced. I wondered what the deal was with loverboy Eric, if she was so obviously struggling with the prospect of Bill having someone else. Was she still torn, or just a selfish little bitch?

'I heard that,' she snapped. 'And it's neither. I just want to know you're gonna treat him good.'

_Yeah right, _I thought, turning my face away, but then I shook myself, unclenching my fists and turning back, my green eyes clashing with her soft brown. 'I love him,' I said abruptly. 'I have always loved him, even after I tried my best to run away from it.'

'I know that, I can hear it as plain as day. Please, if you don't mind, tell me what happened?' The defensiveness in her manner melted away. I couldn't dig in her mind, but I could feel her sadness and confusion. There were two sides to every story, and whatever had happened between her and Bill, it was not all her fault. I knew what he was like, after all.

'Life happened,' I said. 'Reality, common sense, some scary ass vampires..those kind of things. I'm sure you can relate.' A brief smile of recognition touched her full lips, and I relaxed my stance, settling into the corner of the couch. 'It was three years ago,' I began. 'Before the vampires came out in public. I was in a bar with some not very good friends who ditched me. I didn't want to go home, and I was looking for something exciting...someone unusual, not your usual conquest. I saw Bill across the room, he was out hunting.' I felt myself smile at the memory. 'I knew there was something very different about him, something scary. But he was handsome, and lonely. So lonely I could feel it coming off him in waves. His eyes were so cold, and yet tragic. I wanted to rescue him from himself. How fucked up is that?'

Sookie pulled a face. 'It ain't effed up to me,' she said dryly.

I laughed lightly, thinking for a second that under different circumstances, we would probably get along just fine. 'At first, it was all about sex with us. And food. Me being food, obviously. He was so quiet and mysterious, practically mute, but incredibly passionate, like the only way he knew how to communicate was um, through...well, you know what I mean,' I finished hurriedly, seeing she was blushing beet red. 'Eventually, he started to open up. Not much, but some. He was smart, and dry, and a good man, a noble man. I fell for him so hard, there was no stopping myself. I thought the fact he was a stranger and vampire didn't matter, providing we were together.' I paused and swallowed a sudden lump in my throat. Sookie was listening intently. 'And then it all started to go wrong. I knew he didn't feel the same about me, and it hurt me terribly. Drove me crazy. I've got a lot of pride, and when I was attacked at the palace when he was visiting with the Queen, and I got in trouble at work for dating a vampire, I did the right thing and broke it off. It didn't make me happy, and I have been alone ever since.'

My voice was thick, too emotional, and I was revealing too much. I shrugged and turned away, uncurling my legs and sitting up straighter, then faced her again with a chilly smile. 'There's the condensed version. I'm afraid I'm too tired and beat to continue this nice chat. I hope I have satisfied your curiosity, Sookie.'

Her deep brown eyes were piercing and wise despite her comparative youth, and silly blonde, country girl appearance. And full of a sadness so sharp I felt it cut me to the quick. 'I hope you will look after him for me,' she said quietly. 'I cannot forgive and forget like you. Maybe if I wasn't with Eric...shoot, there are so many maybes.' She shook her head and got to her feet. 'Doesn't matter,' she added shortly. 'I'll leave you to it. Thanks for talking to me.' Without a backward glance, she hurried from the room. As the door slammed closed, I sat there frozen for a while, intermittently furious, confused, miserable as sin and on the verge of hysterical laughter. What a fucked up situation I had gotten myself into. 'Willingly, I might add,' I muttered to myself like a madwoman.

I exploded into movement, thinking I was going to have that bath solo, duck my head under the water and stay there for a while, listening to the echoing silence. I opened the bedroom door and stalked across the quiet space, not noticing the daytime shutters were rolled back. As I passed the bed, a hand shot out from under the duvet, taking my wrist firmly, a warm, husky voice calling my name. I whirled around with a startled squeak. The duvet was gone, and Bill was lying there looking up at me. I wanted to snarl at him, show him the fangs I didn't have, but all that fell away when I met his gaze. His fine blue eyes were wide and full of light, not a trace of grief, uncertainty or guilt left in his face.

He had obviously heard everything that had been said, but he looked at me with admiration and adoration, like I was the only woman in the world, and the other woman was nothing. 'Come lie with me,' he coaxed, tugging at my arm.

'I don't want to be that woman,' I blurted out, my eyes misting over. 'The stupid rebound woman. I can't bear it. I deserve better.'

His face fell into serious lines, and he sat up, bringing my hand to his mouth. He bowed over it, and kissed it, holding it to his cool cheek. 'You're not that woman, you're _my _woman, if you permit it,' he said quietly but firmly. 'A beautiful, proud, gracious woman, who does me great honour, offering me comfort when I should not dare to even hope for it.'

'Oh, Bill,' I said helplessly. My treacherous heart was thawing, tears falling freely down my face, my feet moving closer to the bed. But he was not finished talking, seducing me with words, revealing more glimpses of the man I barely knew but always suspected was there.

'My life has been directed very much by women,' he said carefully. 'There was love between myself and my wife, and especially Sookie. Even for the Queen, and the woman who made me vampire. But always it was twisted. Whether by duty and obligation and tradition, or force, lies and manipulation. I never had that with you, Juliet, you just gave me yourself. I believe that is enough to build something, and make you as happy as you have tried to make me, my darling.'

He tugged at the sash of the horrible robe, stripping it from my body. Still weeping, I crawled onto the bed at his guidance, lying across his body, my head pillowed on his chest as he stroked my hair. I calmed immediately, my tears drying at the safe strength of his body wrapped around me, and the sweet, low caress of his voice luring me down from the cloud of uncertainty. And I trusted him. Foolishly and recklessly maybe, but love does stupid things to vampires and humans alike.

I turned my head, kissed the spot where his heart was, and pressed my ear against it, listening to the silence, knowing there was love in there somewhere for me. And I was content.

THE END


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